"A Hellfish flys again! " DVV Gridlocked
After beating Burns in a poker match and gaining control of all his assets as a result a new power leads springfield...Grampa Simpson!
Now in charge of the town as it welcomes new arrivals will Grampa Simpson be able to protect the town and it's new residents from the forces of the kings while trying to keep the madhouse that is springfield in check and figure out how to use a computer or will he flounder.
Once again, you can't help but keep looking through the window of his offi- Sorry, YOUR office (man, that still feels weird saying). No matter how many times you look, the view is still the same: a pair of barely maintained buildings and those two cooling towers with those weird atom symbols painted on them, still releasing that annoying smoke.
Honestly, you kind of get bored with this view after the first day. That asshole Burns surely felt some sort of happiness at looking at that, but you don't share his shitty tastes. Still, it's undoubtedly a better view than the rest of the city. It's been almost 3 months since the dome blew up, and things haven't quite gotten back to normal. Sure, people have managed to return to some semblance of normalcy, but the city's wreckage hasn't been cleared, and some buildings need a lot of repairs. You wonder when that lazy mayor is going to get off his money jacuzzi and begin fixing this mess. Damn, youngsters these days! Back in your youth, people were more responsible with their jobs!
Anyway, back to the power plant: the place still looks lame with its cheap-ass appearance, not worse for wear, surprisingly, even with all the chaos in the city during the quarantine. Stupid Burns must have paid some good money to keep this place working while the rest of the city had the electricity cut off. He must have kept laughing from his office while the rest of the city went through a hard time. Well, the joke's on him; it's your office now!
And once again, your thoughts go back to this. YOUR office. Your workers. Your Power Plant. You still can't come to terms with it, to tell the truth. Any moment now, you expect your former squad mate to appear from a hidden door in the office and go on a long-ass monologue about how this is a plan to humiliate you again.
But no, this time it's real; your damn gut tells you that. You really have ownership of this damn building and everything that miserly Burns owns.
You can remember it as if it happened a week ago. In fact, it DID happen a week ago!
And like all good stories, it started with poker.
—-------------------------------------------------------—-----------------------------------------------------------
The room was thick with the smell of high-class cigars and wine. It was dark, with only the ceiling light illuminating a small section of the room. Below that light, a group of the most rich and powerful men in Springfield were reunited for their monthly poker night.
There was Richard "Rich" Texan. Famous business owner of Springfield and too trigger-happy for your liking whenever he lost a round. You heard through the grapevine that with the dome accident, his business took a serious hit and was going through some hard times, so seeing him here betting absurd amounts of money was a surprise. The rumors could be false, or he was too stubborn to appear weak in front of these people. Your bet was on both.
Krusty the Clown was also here, though the star didn't have the usual smile he always wore for his shows. His clothes were a bit messy and were missing some of his iconic makeup. He seemed to have gone through some rough times these past few weeks, but eh, that's what all of us are dealing with. I'm not big on sympathy for this whippersnapper.
And then there was HIM! Your former Squad mate in the Flying Hellfish Unit, Montgomery Burns, with his bald head and impeccable green suit, had a smarmy smile on his face during the whole poker game. His assistant, Smithers was there, serving as the dealer for this occasion. The man looked like a lost puppy that was happy to follow the asshole wherever he went. Admittedly, he seemed to be the happiest of all the people in the room right now. Lucky him.
Oh, and don't forget you, the butt of the joke for that occasion.
Honestly, the only reason you were there was because of Burns. He approached you early today, asking you if you wanted to earn some money today and remember the "good times". You knew the bastard was up to one of his tricks, and accepting would make things worse for you. But there was no other choice.
You needed the money. Even after the dome broke down and things started to get fixed, not everything went back to normal. The Springfield Retirement Castle hadn't been fixed for all the damage it sustained during the crisis, and most importantly, there was no money for your medicine! You needed that stuff ASAP! So with a weary heart, you got your best suit out, gathered as much money as you had left, and got ready for what was supposed to be one of the worst nights of your life.
During the whole game, Burns and the other two players kept observing with mirth and snickering at all actions. How you were barely able to call the bets made, or your crestfallen expression whenever your hand lost to one of theirs. Burns brought you here, so he could put you down even more!
"Here! A straight, try and beat that!" You said this, showing Burns what was undoubtedly your best hand so far in the game.
"Mmm, a commendable effort, Simpson. Commendable, but useless once again." He said it with an air of arrogance, his smirk not leaving even once! "Full house, see and weep." He said this as he proceeded to take the money pot for this round.
And weep you almost did, these last rounds your luck has been down the drain along with your money, while Burns seemed to keep getting better and better. If this were to continue, you would certainly end up poor without a nickel to your name.
You watched the other 2 players' reactions, and they were as disheartening as yours. The Texan threw his hat on the ground and was seemingly unloading all the ammo he had into it, ridding it of holes. Krusty just sighed and was drowning his sorrows with the help of a bottle of wine, his expression as defeated as yours.
"Well, gentlemen, as fun as it is to keep stealing all the money you spent so much to get, especially yours, Simpson." He starts, and you almost flip him the bird but barely manage to restrain yourself. "I have other things to do, such as count how much money my wallet has gained. So I propose this: for one last round, the winner gets everything from the other losers. And trust me when I say, everything." He ends with a sly tone and reaches into his pocket, pulls out a piece of paper, and throws it into the middle of the table. Krusty, the Texan, and you get closer to take a good look, and a collective gasp follows.
Burns just put on the table the documents giving ownership to his power plant. The crazy bastard was actually serious. You cannot believe this.
And so another round began, all the money was thrown on the table, and the tension was high.
But as always, Lady Luck seemed to have forgotten about you. Your pathetic excuse of a poker hand you were given wasn't going to win you anything.
You almost fold and call it quits for tonight when something strange happens. You still can't put your finger on it, but you remember it clearly. As you opened your mouth to quit, the ticking of a clock started ringing in your ears, and your vision was suddenly blurred. You closed your eyes and rubbed them. All the while, the ticking didn't stop. You assume it was the stress getting to you.
After a bit, you opened your eyes, and the ticking seemed to finally stop. You looked at your poker hand, hoping somehow in the mere moments that passed the cards would transform into something useful, but alas, things stayed the same.
As you looked up into Burns's eyes and were ready to give up, you noticed something interesting. A small glint was coming off Burns's wrist. At first, you assumed it was a watch, but after giving it a better look, things started to make more sense.
"You cheating snake!" You hollered as your body moved faster than someone your age would expect. You grasped Burns' right arm and rolled up his sleeve. There, strapped to his wrist, was a cardholder with an Ace.
"What's that, mate?" Texan said as he leveled his revolver to Burns. "You weren't thinking of cheating, were you?" His gaze was murderous. Krusty too, seemed to pick up what was going on, and his expression looked pissed.
"Um... this you mean?" Burns said as he clutched his wrist, his gaze looking quickly into the eyes of the other 3 players, trying to come up with something. "It… my lucky holder, of course; I just use it for good fortune…" He still kept that annoying smirk, but sweat was starting to appear on his face. "It's like the lucky revolvers you like bragging about, don't you? Hehehe." He gives a weak laugh.
"Then you wouldn't mind playing another game without it, right?" You pressed on as you ripped the thing from him.
"What happens if I don't want to, eh, Simpson?" He turns his gaze to you, and you stare at nothing but hate and pettiness incarnate. And you didn't back down one bit, you couldn't give him any ground.
Luckily, the other two players were on your side this time. The Texan quickly fired a shot from his revolver, the bullet passing extremely close to Burns's head, and he, with a frightened expression, conceded almost immediately.
Except that wasn't the only thing that happened. The bullet impacted with a wall clock (you swear that wasn't there at the beginning, but you could have just forgotten, eh? It happens), and it ricochets into a glass of expensive alcohol. The glass and contents somehow landed straight into Smithers's eyes. The man dropped to the ground, squirming in pain as the alcohol burned his eyes. But no one at the table paid attention to him, all their focus was on the man who spent the whole night cheating.
"Fine, fine!" The cheater raises his hands in exasperation. "We will do it your way. I don't need some cheap tricks to be successful, Pff." He crossed his eyes and folded his arms. "Smithers, quick shouting in pain, you are making me look bad." The assistant, after a while, managed to stand up, but his eyes were inflamed and possibly more hurt. And once again, nobody cared, not even you.
And so a new game was played. The winner takes all. And this time things were looking up for you.
Smithers dealt the cards somewhat clumsily, and you had to use huge amounts of your willpower to not break into a full-on grin. Burns also kept that same smirk of his, while Krusty and the Texan each had a grimace.
A few rounds passed, and things started to reach their apex.
"Straight Flush." Burns declares as he shows his hand, confidence radiating from his slimy body. "Show what you've got, people." He says it with a little snicker.
The Texan immediately throws his poker hand on the table, nothing worth mentioning except a pair of 9. Krusty had folded the turn before and stopped paying attention to the game, instead, he spent the time drinking more from a flask he had brought.
You just stared at his hand, your face giving away nothing, while inside your heart was pounding so hard you expected to have a heart attack anytime now.
"C'mon, Simpson, stop wasting my time." He says it with a quick motion of his hand. "I need to get back home. Some people need their beauty sleep."
Without any objections, you decide to listen to him and drop your cards onto the table, so everyone can see them. Immediately, a few gasps and a shout of full horror resonated across the room.
"NOOOOOOO!!! "How can this be?" Montgomery Burns stares in abject horror at the royal flush across the table, where you sit. The 10, Jack, Queen, King, and Ace of Diamonds are standing there proudly.
"I think you were talking about MY new house, don't you?" You said this as you grabbed the whole pot. Not only money, but a few documents that indicated you were the proud owner of a new business and some other shinnies.
"You-You think I will let this happen? Give it back. GIVE!!! IT!!! BACK!!!" Burns tried to stop you, but the most he could do with his skeletal body was to be dragged down the street as he held onto your leg. After walking down a few streets, he loses the grip on his leg, and all he can do is stare impotently at your back.
"I will have my revenge, Simpson!" Burns shouted while laying on the ground, his fist raised high as he cursed to the heavens. "Do you hear me?!"
You ignored him, of course, and were more focused on figuring out where his mansion was.
And that's the story of how you became the new owner of Springfield's Nuclear Plant.
—-------------------------------------------------------—-----------------------------------------------------------
You didn't know what to do with all of Burns's riches, and you had no clue how to run the power plant. You were totally at a loss until your friend Jasper suggested it to you.
"How about you hire someone to help you do that stuff?" He said this as he rested on one of the cushy sofas in Burns' mansion. The place was elegant but had some issues. Mostly, all the pictures and statues of Burns decorated the place. The man had an EGO! "Isn't that what Burns does with that lackey of his?"
"I suppose that's as good an idea as any." You shrug, deciding you lost nothing trying. "Thanks, Jasper."
The man shrugs, deciding to keep his focus on the TV. Both of you were watching a marathon of Mattock, and it was great!
Jasper and you may not have seen eye to eye before. But now he is one of the few people you can count on. Even more than your son. As much as he says he is here only for the food and TV, you know he has your back on all of this.
And so you decided to make a post in the newspaper. The next day at the power plant, you spent all morning in your office, waiting. After a few hours, it seemed no one was going to come. But at the last moment, he appeared.
"Hi-diddly-ho!" Your son's most hated nemesis, and owner of the now-destroyed Leftorium, Ned Flanders. "You look like you could use some help."
And so, that's how Ned became your assistant. Your Smithers, but in a cool way. —-------------------------------------------------------—-----------------------------------------------------------
Lots of people came to visit you after they learned the news: Mayor Quimby asked for a bribe, and Burn's lawyers asked if they worked for you now ("How would I know!?"), Bart and Lisa's principal who wanted money for the school, Agnes Skinner who came to pick up her son, your friend Hans (who just wanted a beer and nearly got tackled by security because he tripped an alarm while looking for the kitchen), the kid's principal's boss who came to see where his employee went off to, but the last one that got your attention the most.
He was a fellow in a black suit and sunglasses by the name of "-John Doe, and I would like a word with you about something important." Important? Wonder what that's about? It's probably best to let him keep talking. It's not like he's from the gover-"I represent some…concerned parties on behalf of the United States Government." OH SON OF A BITC-.
"OH SON OF A BI- "Cough! cough! cough!" Sorry, frog in my throat. Come on, have a seat." You damn parasite. You think darkly as the slime in human clothing takes a seat while you try to hide your disgust.
Figures: An octogenarian can't make 8 figures in this country without Uncle Sam taking a cut. Never mind that you're a veteran (not that it's stopped them before). You don't want to dodge taxes as much as Burns did, but it still hurts. The least they could do is send you a spook who can think up a good fake name. I mean, John Doe? Like the actor? These government people have no imagination. You thought of better names when you hid with Jasper to avoid recruitment! Might as well cut the bullshit. "So, what do you want with me? And what happened to that guy on the monitor? Did you guys fire him?"
The slime in human clothes just smiles and takes a seat in front of you. "I'm afraid that counts as classified information".
"I'll show you classified!". You forcibly pulled a lever under your desk, revealing a bevy of buttons and dials Burns had installed to torture anyone who even mildly displeased him.
"Once I remember which one of these does what, you'll be sorry you were ever born!" John just barely flinches when you flip a small dial, and an arm extends from the ceiling…to pour him a beer. "Heh. Well, while you're doing that, I'm going to ignore that murder attempt and get on with my spiel."
"See, we've noticed that in the 3 months since the dome-" "Which YOU put us in!". You turn a knob, lowering a wall to reveal a trophy case full of even more busts of Burn's head. Great.
"-that Springfield is still in dire straits. Broken buildings, damaged infrastructure-" "Which would've been worse if you bombed us!" Another button lowers a disco ball. The rug behind John retracts to reveal a lit dance floor as music begins to play. You like it!
"-and all the roads leading to Shelbyville, except Springfield's, looks like a bombing run, for some godforsaken reason!" Heh, that one was Springfield, actually: If they wouldn't help Springfield when it was trapped in the dome, then we'll give them the next best thing!
Finally, a trapdoor opens 5 feet to John's left! "There! Flanders, throw him in!" John grabs the bridge of his nose and sighs. "Look, the bottom line is that this isn't sustainable for you, and ignoring it isn't sustainable for us if we want to use Shelbyville as a base to start reclaiming the wasteland."
You look up from your console, utterly befuddled. Did you hear that right? "The waste…land?" What in Sam Hill is he talking about?
John stared at you with a mix of confusion and pity. "Yes?" You cleaned your ears again "...The greatest natural disaster in American history? The continental dust bowl that's swallowed almost a 4th of this country and ends a stone's throw away from Shelbyville!?!" He says this while looking at the two of you, who have no idea what's going on.
Even Flanders seemed baffled by this. Thinking about it gave you a mild headache that came as soon as it left. Ignoring you, John straightened his tie with a look of disgust that seemed split between your ignorance and his outburst. "Well, while you were living under a rock-" A pointed glare cuts off your next interjection. "We were planning on doing something about it".
John pulls out a file labeled "Springfield Reconstruction Grant" and plants it on your desk. "Signing this document will send an elite fleet of construction crews to rebuild Springfield at no charge to yourself. As a matter of fact, you'll also be given a large sum, IF you agree to never leak details about the dome or its destruction to the media."
Flanders takes over while you're still reeling from the news. "Sir, I don't mean to look a gift horse in the mouth, but why on earth would you ask this of us instead of the mayor?" He says this as he picks up the document and starts checking it out.
"Because as the owner of the former Burns estate, we believe Mr. Simpson holds more salient power and authority over the remnants of Springfield than that buffoon ever has. Now sign the damn papers; I don't have all day." Your eyes met Flander's for a short moment; uncertainty was also in his eyes. You weren't sure what to do.
After thinking about it for a moment, you choose:
[]: Sign the damn papers. You don't think the government could do anything to make up for those days in the dome, but sore feelings won't put a roof over people's heads. The cash is a nice bonus, though.
(Automatically completes every Springfield reconstruction action. Abe gains 10 income. Minor reclamation efforts near Shelbyville can begin now?)
[]: Don't. It doesn't matter if they pave the streets with gold, no one in Springfield will ever forgive the government for what they did! Besides, the damages aren't as bad as they look (especially without Burns monopolizing the town's resources).
(Abe gains a hefty amount of blackmail that can be used to extort the government (within limits) or deal a heavy blow to its reputation. Abe will have more freedom to explore the wasteland. If this option is picked, Springfield will attempt one reconstruction action per turn. Most of the actions involving Springfield will be locked out for Abe until the whole thing is fixed.)
—-------------------------------------------------------—-----------------------------------------------------------
After the damn spook leaves, you put your head down on the table, sighing as you pull out your pocket watch, at least it's final—it's 11.59 am! Ah, dammit!
Oh, wait! It's a minute behind, and you start to look it over with your old yellow hands the ticking sound ringing in your ears as you do so...
Tick.
Tick..
Tick...
As the old yellow man stares at the watch unmoving, I raise a single old and wrinkled finger before tapping the watch, which moves its hand a minute forward before speaking to myself with no one but me able to hear...
"You have a great power, sergeant ... and a great duty, I am afraid, and though you may not know this, I hope you are well suited for the task...for all our sakes. Though you will have those who will help you in this endeavor."
I say this before turning away from the still-frozen man and starting heading towards the door, before stopping at the doorway and staring back at Abe... and what lies beyond. "Isn't that right… questers?"
Tick...
Tick..
Tick.
As you look at the watch with your old yellow hands tapping it, you blink and see that it now reads the correct time of 12:00. "Huh, guess tapping it actually worked?" you say before raising your head and looking around at the empty office...Oh, wait, no, Ned is still here making some hot cocoa.
After a few minutes, Flanders returned with 2 cups of steaming hot Cocoa. He passed one to you while he started drinking from the other one.
"Well Sir, I think it was great you stuck to your guns and told that man off." You guessed even Flanders was peeved up with the government. He and his 2 sons went through some hard times too during the incident. "Still, are you sure it was a good idea? The city kind of is a fixer-upper right now." He lets some concern appear on his face as he looks at the window.
You remained silent for a while, just letting the nice heat of the cup warm your hands. During your life you did a lot of things, some of them you regret with all your being, while others you would do in a heartbeat. Time will tell which one of those categories this one will fall on.
"Who knows Flanders?" You shrug while taking a sip. Umm Cocoa, Yummie! "But there's no time to be sitting, we have some stuff to do." You have to start doing something with this damm power plant. No more fooling around!
"Glad to hear that Sir! Soooo… whats the plan?"
Income:15
Donate resources to the city's police. DC 30: With the current situation of the city there has been a lot of crime happening around. Lots of stealing, property damage, murder, heck, even jaywalking! The police don't have the current manpower or resources to actually do something, maybe you could lend them a hand somehow?
Rewards: increased public opinion with Springfield, increased public opinion with the government, and made the city more safe.
Upgrade your security force. DC 60: Now that you are the CEO of Burns company you can see a lack of…security in the building. Sure there's lots of traps keeping the place secure against robbers, but not much on actual competent manpower. It wouldn't hurt to fix that.
Rewards: increased DC against any attacks made to your company.
Release the hounds! DC 40: Mr Burns' hounds have got a bit lazy and unfit due to the lack of people to chase so they could use a bit of exercise and training to get back into tip top ship and while you're at it why don't you get the rest of security shored up as well?
Reward: Increased DC against assaults and infiltrations attempts against the Power Plant.
Create your own security group. DC 75: Seeing all those caped people and the current situation of America makes you realize that Springfield isn't as secure as you think. Making your own security group seems like a good idea, having people you can count on to protect you and your family in case of trouble.
Reward: Increase of Dc against people/organizations that are attacking/invading Springfield. Further actions unlocked.
Capture Mutant Animals: DC 45: After your son homer dumped all that pig shit in the lake there's been reports of some weird ass animals roaming around the outskirts of the city. So far they haven't proven to be TOO dangerous to the city, but that. May change sooner or later. Deal with it!
Reward: Mutant Specimens obtained for research! City is safer! Unlocks new actions!
Hire some local workers for your company DC: variable, higher the better. Recruiting more people to help sound like a good idea, y'know what they say, the more the merrier right? Luckily Springfield has loads of people with potential waiting to be found. Hopefully, Someone answers the call.
Rewards: Options to hire a Canon Simpsons hero available.
Hire Outside Workers for your Company DC: Variable higher the better. So, with Springfield opening its doors to newcomers comes a slew of people who need jobs. Maybe it's best to give them a chance, but it can't go that badly... Right?
Reward: Options to hire a Canon Character from outside the Simpsons
Reach out to the government. Dc 70. You aren't too keen to reach out to that Damn government after their bullshit with the Dome and their bomb. Even so, the city could use the help of the government, it might be worth setting talks with them. But if they dare to put another dome on the city you swear you are gonna send non stop mail to the president until they apologize!
Reward: begins communication with the government, possibility to collaborate on actions.
Recruit super villains to your retinue DC 70: Some people might think you are going senile for thinking this But jokes on them! You are already senile! Still back to this. You can tell there are some issues you need help with, and that some goody too shoes wouldn't be amendable to doing. Just have to make sure the people you hire won't double cross you.
Reward: Options to recruit a villain cape.
Recruit Super heroes to your retinue DC 60: Apparently with the SRA many super heroes hadn't had a good time the last few years. Having one working for you could not only benefit you in some ways but also help them in these rough times
Reward: Options to recruit a hero cape.
Recruit Criminals DC 60: You know, maybe a sort of reform program could reduce crime instead of just locking people up!
Reward: You form a reform program that adds various criminals from surrounding prisons to your Recruitment list. Increased opinion from people who advocate for giving criminals second chances
Work with Union Members DC: 45 After Burns lost the company, Lenny and Carl formed an union amongst the workers. A bit inconvenient, but probably for the best. You should talk to them.
Reward: You discuss terms with the Power plant's new Union. Increased opinion with said employees. Increased DC against infiltration.
Just what did burns own? DC: variable. Man, Burn's vault is insanely big, you can believe so much stuff fits in here, and that's not considering other hidden things Burns may have! Taking stock of all of this is important! Who knows what you will find?
Rewards: Knowledge of what burns actually owned, Chances to obtain items and even more income. Possibly more actions unlocked
Buy the Itchy and Scratchy show. DC 45: apparently there this animated show that's been going through some hard times. Apparently it hasn't been earning enough top dollar as always and rumor is it might close down in just a few months. It could be worthwhile to buy it. (Cost 1 Income)
Reward: become the proud owner of the Itchy and Scratchy Show. More actions unlocked, entering business in the show industry.
Support the city reconstruction effort. DC: Varies depending if the district. Choose one:
Northern Springfield DC40 (1 income)
Olden Springfield town Dc 35 (1 income)
The docks and waterfront Dc 30 (1 income)
South Springfield (AKA: the bad part of town) DC 25(1 income)
All the districts at once: DC 100 (3 income)
Reward: For each district fixed, unlock new actions regarding Different sectors of the city, and increase public options with the city's Citizens.
Bring the power plant up to code DC: 40 Once you were able to see the state of the Power plant you blanched, if the notes are right the plant is seriously under performing. There's lot of security risks that need to be addressed. Better get to it. [Cost 2 income]
Rewards: Company now up to standards, raise public opinion, increase amount of wealth gained by the Power Plant, increase DC to assault the company and to infiltrate it.
Look into Expanding your business. DC 65: So far your company only supplies Springfield with energy, why don't you check with nearby cities and see if you can arrange a deal to build more plants for them? They get cheap energy at low costs and you get more money! Win-win situation right?
Rewards: Action to build the power plants near the cities, increase in public opinion, increase of more income once more reactors are built.
Invest in Powell Motors DC 45: Your other son, Herb, has a car manufacturing business that has been.... Mixed in terms of success ever since he met Homer. When it's up, it's really up but when it's down, it's really down. Maybe you could help it out?
Reward: Gain Herb's gratitude; Increased income from entering the motor vehicle market; learn some auto repair knowhow.
Pay your Damn Taxes DC: 50 Turns out Burns' company has spent so long not paying it's taxes the IRS is actively suspicious of your attempts to do so. You should probably do so anyway…
Reward: The IRS will not hate you as much, you may gain income from tax returns depending on how well you roll
Upgrade Springfield Prison DC: 60 This prison is quite frankly notorious for even the lowliest criminal being able to escape pretty easily. Some funds so the place is more secure would probably be well spent!
Reward: Upgrade Springfield's local prison. Criminals won't essentially be able to escape with no effort anymore. High DC to get out or to get in.
Stewardship: bribe Quimby DC:5 Now apparently Burns enjoyed a bit of a close relationship with Quimby so you have been thinking why can't you have something similar? It would certainly help if you had the mayor in your pocket and might stop your enemies from using him against you,that is unless they offer him a bigger bribe…
Reward: Quimby bribed, more freedom in actions with Springfield, decreased dc for certain actions involving Springfield,Quimby won't work against you unless offered a bigger bribe. (Note: You will have to keep paying Quimby 1 income per turn to make sure the mayor is kept loyal… until you decide to stop bribing him. )
Research your competition. DC: 50. You weren't the most keen regarding business and all that, you knew that perfectly. But now that you are the CEO of a company and all that maybe it's a good idea to see what you are up against? You don't want to lose something this important cause you weren't paying attention. Again.
Rewards: You get to know more about other Kings, their business and current state of affairs. Unlocks Collaboration and Infiltration actions.
Look into what happened to Radioactive man. DC: ??? Maybe now would be a good chance to look up what happened with that superhero the city used to have, Radio-Man or something? Your grandson made a huge deal about it before he disappeared.
Reward: Find what happened to the radioactive man and clues to find him. Chances to make contact with Radioactive man himself.
Develop traps for the company. Dc 75 You have to admit it. Burns knew what he was doing when designing some of the traps in his office. They are as creative as they are dangerous. Perhaps you could work in spreading that to the whole company? Who knows, it could help in case of burglars.
Reward: increase Dc for enemies to infiltrate or steal things from you. Chances of shenanigans happening.
Take a look at the wasteland. Dc 30. Now you can't get out of your head that "wasteland" and "dust bowl" thing. You have to check out for yourself. Who knows? Maybe the government was lying about that one too!
Reward: learn more about the wasteland. Unlocks Adventure to explore it.
Learning: Study Maps of the lands/areas near you DC: 35 Hmmmmm... You never know when you might have to visit nearby areas, you know? Better safe than sorry In case such a visit is necessary...
Reward: Have a better grasp of the geography of various areas around you. Learn about interesting locations.
Upgrade the Plant waste disposal methods. Dc 45. For too long has Springfield been affected by the lax way the Power Plant deal with the radioactive waste, mainly dropping it all in the lake and nearby areas. Have your people find a solution now.
Rewards: Springfield pollution is reduced, public opinion increased, Government opinion increased.
Upgrade the laboratories of the Power plant. Dc 35 The scientist that you have in your employ have complained about the poor quality of the current facilities, as well as the lack of better equipment. Buying new stuff should help your lab coats do more science stuff.
Reward: upgraded facilities, small bonus of +5 to National Learning rolls.
Improve the Safety of your Reactors. Dc 70. From what you have heard, your son has been the cause of several near-meltdowns during the years. From what you've seen there's not much in terms of security systems or protocols. There should be a way to make the system safer right?
Rewards: Dc increase to chances of your Reactor blowing up because of in house failures as well as sabotage attempts.
Upgrade your Power Reactor. Dc 80 From what you can tell, the current process the plant is using is well… It sucks. It generates way more waste and doesn't produce the supposed amount of energy that fission power promises. That idiotic Burns cut too many corners when building it. It's time to fix that. Though caution, it's advised from what the scientists tell you.
Reward: Springfield Power plant stops producing waste. Increase income. Unlock action to research Fusion power.
Jog your memory. You lived a looong life, and you have certainly see more things that other people have. You just… don't remember it right now. Maybe spending some time thinking about it could help you remember something useful? …What were you thinking of again?
Reward: Chances to unlock new actions, national or personal.
Hit them books. Suppose now would be a good time as any to read some of the books that your granddaughter Lisa has gifted you for your birthdays. There's lots of info you could glean from them.
Rewards: need to take this action 3 times, once taken gain 1d3+1 Learning.
Hang out with your elders. Even though being the boss of Springfield Nucler Power Plant has occupied much of your time you should give yourself some time to spend with your friends in the retirement home.
Rewards: Abe hangs out with the elders, chance to learn info about things going on in the town or interesting tidbits of info.
Spend time with your son. It's unfortunate that your son doesn't want to spend time with you after the dome accident. Still, you should give it a try to reach out to him and his family.
Rewards: spend time with your son and his family. Chances to recruit Homer as a hero unit. Chances to recruit Marge, Lisa or Bart as a Temp hero unit for next turn.
Get the hounds to like you: Mr burns hounds aren't exactly friendly to most folks and that includes you, so perhaps you should change that.
Reward: Mr Burns' hounds become Abes hounds, obtain two personal guard 'dogs'( if you roll high enough) cripper and badger.
Practice your lying skills. This is the last time you lose to Jasper on Poker Night! You need to get better at faking things. You will get it…somehow.
Reward: increase Abe intrigue stat by 1d2+1 (Needs to be taken twice to complete.)
Hang out with one of your workers. Perhaps you could use some of your free time trying to get to know one of your workers. Who knows what kind of stuff you may find out! (Can be taken multiple times a turn)
Reward: you get to know one of your hero units better, chance of increased opinion, chance to unlock actions related to the hero. ???
Go look for a fashion designer. Clothes maketh the man. That's something you hear in Tv once and it might have a grain of salt on it. Your wardrobe is nothing to talk home about. Let's do something about it.
Reward: Abe gets a Damn nice suit (cost income). Chances to meet ???
Play Poker: Playing cards is how you got into this mess... But it's just too much fun! Reward: Abe plays Poker with a random group of people. He may gain or lose income depending on the Roll.
Figure out this damn control panel: Burn's had a lot of weird buttons on this thing. You might as well see what they do before you press something you shouldn't
Reward: Office adds defense against attacks made against the Power Plant, stewardship bonus for some actions.
A test of your own medicine: You know that old rag about retirement homes drugging you up to the gills to keep you passive? Well Springfield didn't get the memo! Anything that wasn't vital to your day to day might as well have been water with all the good it did you. Let's see what kind of stuff burns money can buy!
Reward: Abe goes and buys actual quality medicine, chances for possible Stat ups! (Learning, stewardship or martial +1).
Is this my beautiful house?: Geez this mansion is huge! What the hell are you gonna do with it all? And what kind of rooms did he think he needed?
Reward: better house awareness, very small bonus to next turn's/next 4 personal actions. Chances to find some weird rooms?
Visit Maude Flanders grave: your beloved first wife Maude has passed away for years but you never forgot her.
Reward: Visiting her grave gives Flanders peace of mind on this upcoming times, chances of ???.
Spend some time with your sons. Just because you have more… "interesting job" there's no reason to spend more time with your family! You better check on Your kids now that you have some time.
Reward: Flanders spends some time with his sons. Chances to raise opinions of Abe.
Go to Church: Nothing like going to the church and feeling in contact with the Lord! After the Dome incident ended more people seemed to go to church! And you know how people like to blab in those places. Perhaps you could get some interesting tidbits?
Reward: Chances to meet new people and learn some interesting information.
Go to the Gym: Now that you have some free time perhaps you could spend it on the gym. It seems working for Abe might be a bit more physically demanding than your other jobs. Better make sure your muscles are up to the task!
Reward: Martial Stat gain if rolled high enough
Go to the theater and watch a show: it's been a while since you've been to a theater show but now that you have some time and money why don't you go see one?
Reward: Jasper has a good time, chances to meet ???.
Go visit some old war buddies: it's been some time since you've seen them and you don't even know if they are still alive after all these years but it can't hurt to attempt to find and visit them can it?
Rewards: Jasper meets some old war buddys. Possible useful information from the ones still in the military, chances to get in contact with ???.
Play chess with abe. Abe has complained that you cheat on Poker all the time. That's not true! You only cheat half the time! Still if he is gonna complain too much perhaps you can beat him in another game.
Reward: Jasper plays chess with abe. Possible stat increase for high enough roll.
[X] Building Our Homefront
-[X] National Actions
--[X] Donate resources to the city's police.
--[X] Hire local workers for your company (Ned Flanders)
--[X] Support the city reconstruction effort
---[X] The docks and waterfront
--[X] Research your competition
--[X] Upgrade the laboratories of the Power plant
--[X] Take a look at the wasteland (Jasper Bonus)
-[X] Personal Actions
--[X] Abe
---[X] A test of your own medicine
---[X] Practice your lying skills
---[X] Hit them books.
---[X] Hang out with your elders
--[X] Flanders
---[X] Visit Maude Flanders grave
--[X] Jasper
---[X] Go visit some old war buddies
Martial:
Donate resources to the city's police. DC 30:
Roll: 30+24(Abe's Martial)+10 (A Grandpa to all Springfield)=64
CRULLER CRITICAL SUCCESS!
"Sooooooo... This is a pretty sizeable donation, Simpson."
"You bet your bottom dollar it is! We gotta keep Springfield safe in these trying times!"
You were sitting down In Chief Clancy Wiggum's office, talking to him after using some of your funds to, as he stated, donate to the Springfield police department.
Sure, they weren't the most competent (if at all), but maybe a little elbow grease and better resources could get them into shape!
"Also... Between you and me... Doughnut shops all around town have been threatened."
Well, a little white lie never hurt anyone... To your knowledge!
"WHAT!? LOU, EDDIE, GET OVER HERE! WE'RE WORKING DOUBLE TIME!"
Reward: Police armed to the teeth! Crime in the city has gone down! Public Opinion Increases. Chief Wiggum now has a tank…There's no way anything bad can happen with it! Police motivated to defend their sacred Doughnut shops! Police gives now bonus against invasions to Springfield!
Diplomacy:
Hire some local workers for your company DC: variable, higher the better.
Roll: 40+13(Abe's Diplo)+26(Flander's Diplo)+5(Hidely Ho!)+3(Loyalty) = 87
Great Success!
You were once again waiting in your office a bit anxious. It has been a few weeks since you have asked Flanders to start looking for people to hire.
A part of you was afraid no one would accept the offer. Thanks to Burns, the power plant didn't have the best reputation, you would have to work hard to escape from Burns' shadow.
Just then, the door to our office opened and Flanders stepped forward, a stack of papers in his hands and a spring to his step.
"Hello there Sir!" Flanders says as he arrives at your desk. "Like the Archangel Gabriel, I've come bearing great news!" He puts the stack of papers on the desk as he continues talking.
"We received lots of people interested in our offer! It took a bit of time to sort them out but I think I was able to find the most promising ones!" He says as he begins to tell you how the interviews went.
TO BE CONTINUED ON THE INTERLUDE: "The Best of Springfield and Everything Else!"
Stewardship:
Support the city reconstruction effort. DC: Varies depending if the district. Choose one:
The docks and waterfront Dc 30 (1 income)
Roll: 38+8(Abe's Stewarship)+10(A Grandpa to all Springfield)=56
Great success!
You thought about it and realized that the old docks and waterfront could be a good place to start with repairs.
After all, you never know when it could be useful to have such a good place of storage and water based business!
So you get to work on it. It goes pretty well! You just hope nothing crazy happens... Well, it's Springfield, so nothing too crazy!
Reward: Springfield Waterfornt finally repaired, Increased Opinion with Springfield Citizens!
Intrigue:
Research your competition. DC: 50
Roll: 98+16(Abe's Intrigue)=114
RESOURCEFUL CRITICAL SUCCESS!
Once you finished ordering Flanders to look for new hires and ask Jasper to check out that "Wasteland" thing, you decided to take upon yourself the job of checking out possible rivals.
You had no idea how to do that…so you resorted to your most trusty source of information, the television! It took a few weeks of watching the news, as well as asking some of the workers of the company to gather any interesting facts in newspapers but you managed to get a general idea of today's economy, the most prominent companies as well as what's happening in other places in America.
But you still thought you were missing some things, no way the news would tell all the interesting stuff, so you decided to check out the documents on Burns Office. Guy had this business running for years now, and though he was infamous for cutting corners in everything, You know he never skimped on finding ways to cheat the competition.
So after a long search of his office, a safe found, and a busted lock, you had access to Burns' confidential papers. And GOOD LORD, your eyes couldn't believe what you found.
According to his notes, for a few years now a bunch of CEOs have been using entire states as their own personal "fiefdoms", as burns likes to call it, amassing so much power and influence they can do almost whatever they damn well wish! Supposedly even the government has a hard time standing up to them.
Apparently these bigshots dont take too kindly to strangers entering uninvited and causing a ruckus. Burns' notes didn't go too deeply into it but there were several warnings to not try any funny stuff against them. You wonder what, if anything, they did to make him sound so scared in these reports?
Wow…you weren't expecting this when you began your research. You still can't wrap your head around it!
Surely Burn's notes have to be exaggerated…or even plain wrong, right?
Still…you are going to need a break from all this stuff. It's too heavy for your poor heart.
What happened to those good old times when your major worry was when your Son would visit you, you wonder?
REWARDS:
Abe learned more about the current situation in America! He has learned about the Kings and their rise to power(though is a tad skeptical of it's full extent)
Collaboration and Infiltrations Actions Unlocked!
Most Noteworthy things from the information gained:
Springfield is located between the borders of two kings' factions! Those being Heinz Doofenshmirtz and Shego!
Doofenshmirtz is the CEO of DEI, which has a monopoly in trinkets and other miscellaneous things. The pharmacist is currently in a 3-way pissing contest with Syndrome and Shego. You don't get it quite well but apparently, it all began because of a series of posts on Social Media. You haven't gotten all the details on this though.
Shego is the CEO of Drakktech, a technology firm, and is also heavily invested in the cape scene. From what you have been able to find out, she and Syndrome seem like they've been butting heads for some months now. She also seems to just…ignore Doof's messages on Social Media about giving him "The part of the territory he rightfully earned?" You have no idea what's talking about.
Syndrome, the sole owner of Kronos Corp, has a focus on military contracts and tech, those round robots of his look quite intimidating! Currently focused on measuring contests with Doof, if any of the long lines of posts in social media can attest to. Also seems to hate that green lady with a passion. Man, it seems some people just don't like the color green eh?
Judge Doom, with his Cloverfield Industries, seems to have total control of the infrastructure sector. He seems to be in total control of an area called "Doomtown", a weird name and is the head of the anti-toon movements. Currently, he has spent the last few months focusing his attempts at destroying any credibility of Disney, once one of the most famous entertainment companies, which has stopped producing animations and has been forced to focus on the creation of Theme Parks. Man, that's just sad to see.
David Xanatos, owner and CEO of the one and only Xanatos Enterprises, has fingers in several pies like construction, genetics, and tech. Burns's notes have said that this man shouldn't be approached at all costs, and if forced to do so, take the most precautions possible. What on earth did he do to Burns so scared of him?
There's been several news stories about a group of masked individuals with weird skull-shaped helmets attacking several locations in New York, some of them had been properties that Xanatos owns, but there is not much, if any, info about them.
Apparently, there's a famine going on..Why the hell are you just learning about this?! Luckily, Toffee and his New Mewni Company have been the leading force in making sure that America is being fed. Though it seems he alone hasn't been able to feed all of America. Mmm, maybe there's something you could do about that? Springfield IS famous for its Lemon Trees after all.
(Action to Create Lemon Farms unlocked! Unfortunately…you can't take this action until all of Springfield is reconstructed!)
And lastly, there are not one, but TWO companies selling robots: Leviathan Corp and Inventco.
Leviathan Corp is mostly known for their "friendly frobots" doing odd jobs around the country, but they've recently made great strides in children's entertainment: toys, video games, comic books, and most recently: cartoons! They've already released one "with more to come" much to doom's chagrin. They're *very* new, new enough that burns has almost nothing on them.
Inventco on the other hand is almost the polar opposite, going for a mature, retrofuturism aesthetic. Bah, back in your day it was just the future! While frobots are built for specific jobs, Inventco's Helping Hats are advertised as being a housekeeper, butler, personal assistant, and more all in one! They also sell useful products that are notorious for being unintuitve to anyone who isn't one of their hats.
Burn's notes had very little about them, save that most of the people he hired to investigate either quit or found nothing. Some even gave refunds!
The weird thing is that no one has ever seen or heard anything of either CEO, maybe they're just shy?
Learning:
Upgrade the laboratories of the Power plant. Dc 35
Roll: 38+10(Abe's Learning)=48
Success!
"It's wonderful! Bloody wonderful!!!"
You hear for the 7th time this day after handing the lab coats a check to buy new equipment for the lab's. You didn't expect the researchers to be this happy! Guess the old equipment was worse than you thought.
Oh well it's good that these eggheads can get some joy out of their work now. I mean one feller is even dancing.
"My wife and kids will finally love and respect me again!"...okay now you feel bad for that guy.
Reward: Springfield Power Plant outfitted with modern facilities! Now you finally have equipment worth something! +5 to all National Learning actions that requiere the use of the Power Plant Facilities.
Jasper Action:
Take a look at the wasteland. Dc 30.
Roll: 3+16(Abe's Intrigue)+10(Jasper's Learning)+1(Loyalty)=30
Exact Success!
Jasper slunk into your office to give his report. He insisted that he told you this in person.
No one knew what to expect from this, which was why you had to send the best man for the job. A man you've trusted to save your life over and over again, and you his.
"It's bad." Report after report gets laid on your desk. Air quality, water quality, and dead foliage. Hospitalizations. All cross-referenced with a map of the area and potential paths through. Very little testimonials, however. Barely anyone stuck around until things got as bad as they were now. Jasper spent some time pointing the rest to resources that could help them move.
Anyone else wouldn't see anything different about him, but you did. The slight tremors in his hands. The reserved walk. They way he had to fight to not have a far away look in his eyes. You know all too well. It feels like a minute before he starts talking.
"They're as reliable as they can be without going in there ourselves. We tried, but About 2 miles out people started coughing their lungs out. Gas masks make it better, but they couldn't get everything. Even then, I still caught a whiff and…"
"...it smelled like war."
…Ohh.
You are gonna have to take a look at this so-called wasteland.
Reward: Now you know the Government wasn't lying!...You kind of wish they were. Discovered safe routes to the Wasteland, as well as what precautions and equipment you might need to enter that place.
Adventure Unlocked!!!: ONCE MORE UNTO THE BREACH!!!
Personals:
ABE
A test of your own medicine: 25
It turns out switching prescriptions isn't as easy as calling someone and saying "I have money, give me drugs!". There's forms to fill, papers to read, and a whole bunch of other annoying stuff that you swore money could take care of for you. If anything, this bull-in-a-chinashop approach might"ve given you(read, flanders)more things to look at! You don't want to hear about "side effects" and "liabilities", you just want whatever kept burns from keeling over!
Needless to say, you're a bit in over your head with this. Lost in the sauce, like the youth call it (that's what it means right?).
Bah, you wouldn't even be doing it if some of the stuff you've read didn't look worth it.
Result: failure. Next time the action is taken roll with -5 due to clinical confusion.
Practice your lying skills: This past week you spent your free time working on how to hide your emotions better. You have been practicing in front of a mirror and with Flnaders and the rest of the workers in the Plant. You have felt some progress but still have ways to go.
(½ completed. Take the action one more time to gain 1d2+1 intrigue)
Hit them books: You were able to read a few of the books that your granddaughter Lisa gives you for your birthdays. They are basically giant encyclopedias of several topics. It's been a slow thing, you more often than not fall asleep after a while, but you ARE learning. Better keep doing it!
(⅓ completed. Take the action two more time to gain 1d3+1 Learning)
Hang out with your elders: 41
You don't want to go forgetting your roots just because you're a big shot now! So you decide to go visit your old friends!
However, with the medicinal issues, you zone out for a little bit and get lost. You eventually stumble across your friend Old Jewish Guy (was that offensive? Eh, he never objected, it's probably fine!).
"Oh! Abe! Hello there! You won't believe it! I just remembered a really funny story! It all starts with a lucky Penny-"
Needless to say, the next 3 hours weren't really worth mentioning, and you didn't really get to visit anyone else.
Reward: Abe spent his entire visit with the Old Jewish Guy, and though they had a good time, no information of worth was gained.
FLANDERS:
Visit Maude Flanders grave: 88
According to Flanders, his visit to his late wife's grave was more… "livelier" than usual. He didn't give you many details while talking on the phone. He said he needed to tell you in person…but that it would be best if no one else approached the graveyard for the time being.
To be continued in the interlude: Hi-Diddly-Ho…Kaiserino?
JASPER:
Go visit some old war buddies: 51
After his excursion to the wasteland, Jasper tried to get in contact with some of his friends from the military, see what's been of their life so far.
From what he was able to tell you, most of his friends had already passed away, sadly. He did hear about a hotshot general getting transferred nearby, but nobody he knew.
There was one more person he wanted to try looking for. A man whom Jasper knew very, very little, save for one thing. He showed you the last photo of his old platoon and for the very first time pointed to an empty chair with a Sniper rifle next to it. "That's my last man. I'm sure of it."
You can't bring yourself to object. You know what it's like when an army man chases ghosts. You just hope he finds whatever he needs.
Reward: Jasper unlocked personal action to look for his old Sniper friend. Unlocked the option the recruit the mysterious general
Ned Flanders was sitting in his new office at the Power Plant, that was assigned to him by his new boss, the father of his good old neighborino Homer.
It was a small office, when he had gotten it was completely empty aside from a plastic chair and a wobbly table. Obviously, this was due to the management decisions from Mr Burns, giving the bare requirements to all the departments of this company.
Luckily, when he asked Mr Simpson if he could fix up the place a little, not only the man agreed, he even gave him a few stacks of money from Burns's vault and told him to "knock yourself out! Well…not literally." With that he was able to fix this little place and give it a seriously needed homely atmosphere!
Things seemed to be finally improving for this old city. Flanders thought as he read the reports about the first reconstruction attempts in the city. He was a little worried at first when Mr Simpson didn't take the deal, but his mood quickly changed when he took upon himself to fix the city. The lord does reward those that are faithful.
As he finished checking the papers, his gaze fell on a photo on his desk. It was of his children and his late wife, Maude. He let a sense of melancholia enter his being. It had been a long time since he had visited her grave. Perhaps after he finished his current task he could give her a visit.
But that was a thought for another time, and right now Ned was a man on a mission, that being interviewing people for potential hires. Mr Simpsons didn't give too many specifications aside from "being good at what they damn did." Okay, a bit open to interpretation, but he could work with that.
A knock on his door a few moments later caught Flander's attention. A candidate? So soon? The day had just begun, he wasn't expecting anyone for a while yet. Well, that seemed like a good sign for him! Well, no reason to keep them waiting!
"Come doodly in." Flanders answers with enthusiasm. The door opens and a guy in a lab coat steps in. "¡Hello, are you here to apply for a job?"
The bucktoothed man in a lab coat straightens his glasses. His name tag reads "John I.Q.N. Frink".
"Actually I came to gawk at your new equipment and appear to be lost. Do you know where the lab is gblahaben!" The man asks expectantly.
"Oh.." Flanders says a little disappointed, but then his face regains his usual smile. "Sure, take a left, then a right, take an elevator to the first floor and down the hall past A113."
"Uh-Thank youuuu!" The man says excitedly as he rushes towards the hall.
Flanders shakes his head while sighing happily. He waits for a few more minutes and once agains someone knocks on the door. "Come doodly in!" Flanders repeats excitedly.
And as the door opens and the first true applicant comes right in, he can help but be surprised, from all the people in Springfield he didn't expect HIM to be locking for a job right now.
"Apu? What are you doing here?" He was intrigued as Apu took a seat in front of his desk. He was wearing his usual clothes as normal, but the prominent smile he always gives to his customers looked a bit more forced than usual.
"Applying for the job sir, of course!" Apu responds back with a thick hindu accent while taking something from his pocket and showing it to you. It was one of your advertisements he had ordered to look for new hires. "The positions are still open right?" Apu says as his gaze takes a more worried look.
"Of course Apu, we haven't finalized anything yet. Though, I have to ask, why are you applying here? Last time I checked, you were still working in the Kwik-E-Mart no?" Flanders asks, intrigued. From what he remembers, during the quarantine, Apu hunkered down there alongside his wife and 8 children. They had lots of food and other resources there and plenty of people tried to take them by force. That didn't end as well as you might think…
There were several hungry citizens surrounding the Store, their clothes dirty and ragged. All of them had weapons in their hands while their faces had an expression of anxiety and hunger.
"Apu we have you surrounded! Surrender the food and no harm shall come to your family!" Comic Book Guys shouted. He was the one leading the charge, wearing armor and a battle axe. Whether they were the real thing or just cheap imitations was anyone's guess.
And in the roof of the store stood apu, his gaze defiant as he stared at the hordes of people that dared to take what was his. His only answer was to load a bullet into his rifle and aim it straight at Comic Book Guy. "In the name of Lord Ganesha as my witness, you won't set a single foot inside my store."
Both sides stood quiet for a moment, judging the other one. Things were so tense you could cut them with a knife, and then, all the citizens rushed forward with a tremendous cry, at the same time, Apu's rifle released a bit BANG! That was heard all across the street.
And so another battle for the Kwik-E-Mart Began. It was another normal day for Apu and his family…
Let's just say that there were many people wounded in their attempts to sack the Mini Mart. For Apu to be here, something incredibly bad must have happened to it. Flanders though with a heavy feeling on his chest.
"That was true up until a few weeks ago." Apu shares with you a heavy expression on his face. "Not only did I have my merchandise stolen a few weeks ago… All Kwik-E-Marts across America had been closed, The American sector just decided to close up!" He exclaims defeat. "Something about having too much competition and that the market wasn't looking as profitable."
"That's why I need the work Mr Flanders! I had a wife and 8 kids to feed… Also I need to do something productive!" He says with anxiousness starting to appear on his face. "I cannot keep staying in my house everyday! I will go insane!"
"Apu…I feel for you, I really do." Flanders tells him with an empathic look on his face. "But…I can just hire you just like that, I mean… Do you have a resume at least?"
"Of course I do!" Apu answers quickly as he take out a folder from…somewhere and lays it on the table. "I had worked several years at Kwik-E-Mart, almost on my own. Trust me…with all you crazy citizens here, no one else could have made that place last for a month." Flanders had to give that to the guy, with the amount of times the place got stolen and the other issues it has, it was a miracle it stayed open until just now.
"I also graduated top of my class from the Calcutta Technical Institute, and have a doctorate in Computer Sciences!" He comments as he shows you a few university documents. "That has to certainly count for something."
Flanders could agree that he had a good point. With these credentials. It wouldn't be a bad choice to recruit Apu, they would just have to make sure to keep his…Workaholic tendencies in check, but he could certainly be a boon to the administration and if Mr Simpson decided to focus more on the digital side Apu expertise could be useful. With that, Flanders made a decision.
"Tell you what, I can't just hire you diddly yet. I still have several people to interview, but your name will certainly be considered. Is that okay for you?" Flanders informs Apu as he gathers the documents and returns them to him.
"...That's all I ask." Apu says with a sigh as he gives Flanders a handshake and heads out of his office while he waits for the next applicant.
(Apu Nahasapeemapetilon Mechanical Breakdown
-Strong Stewardship Hero with a side focus in Learning
-Has a Stewardship reroll ability!
-Has a specialization in computers and programming!
-Is a workaholic…He wants to be put to work. A LOT)
"All right, like, nobody move. I'm just here to speak with the bossman."
Well that's one way to make an entrance. Flanders thought as he stared at the man that abruptly entered the office. He was tall and broadly muscled, with a simplistic...eel(?) on his sleeveless right arm. More impressive was his lovingly combed pompadour. He was obviously used to commanding attention, brooking no quarter as he confidently lumbered to the door connecting you to Abe's office.
"I'm sorry sir, but Mr Simpson isn't taking visitors right now." Flanders says as he recalls that his boss was currently locked in his office, busy researching his competition.
He stops, puzzled. "Simpson? "What happened to Burns?" He questions in his hard to identify accent.
"He transferred his stock a few weeks back." Flanders says, though, not the whole truth, it wasn't a lie by any means. He could hardly believe the story about the poker night himself.
"Aw Bummer! I was hoping he had some work for me. I'm like, totally out of cash." The pompadour man says as he stomps the floor.
"Well if you're looking for work you've come to the right place! We've just started a new hiring initiative! Care to join me mr..." This wasn't planned, but Ned wasn't gonna waste this chance, also the man seemed to really need the help. Taking care of such a pompadour must cost quite the money.
"Snake…" He pauses, eyes darting from left to right as though waiting for something to happen.
Poor fellow must be the shy type. You offer to shake his hand, your other gesturing to a nearby plate of cookies. "It's a pleasure to meet you Mr Snake!"
The man blinks. "Yeah, same." He sits down in the chair in front of you. "So what kind of work did you do for Mr Burns?"
Oh tons of things. Like uh, finding people, getting stuff, Doctoring, , "Negotiating" with people, and local security...testing." Snake says confidently as he eats a cookie.
Flanders whistles impressed. "Wow, that sure is a lot of stuff! I'm a little shocked that the last one hasn't kept your hands full!"
"..what do you mean by that?" The applicant said with a blank face.
"Well it's just with all the robberies happening lately-" You remember that it has been going on for a few weeks now, heck, just this morning there was news about another robbing taking place!
"Oh yeah! Yeah, that. Must be dying down after all the new stuff the police got." Snake says, tugging the collar of his shirt a little.
"Mhm. You want to hear something crazy? Word on the street is they're all being done by one man!" You still couldn't believe the news!
"...he sounds desperate." Snake replies, he can be seen sweating a little, perhaps you should turn on the AC? Today didn't seem that hot for you though.
"Yeah. I wish him the best. But I also wish he didn't, you know-"
"Totally." Snake nods several times. There's a beat of silence as the two men stare at each other.
" ...I also have a degree in archaeology. Wanna see?" The pompadour man says quickly, wanting to change topics.
"Absodoodilley lootley i do!" Flanders replies with high level of enthusiasm.
He grabs a paper square from his pocket and throws it in the air, unfolding before your eyes into a degree in anthropology belonging to one "Chester S Turley".
"Swanky!" A thought occurs. "...do you always keep that on you?"
"Just when I need the luck." He replies with all seriousness as he pockets the paper back.
"Well it's been swell meeting you Mr Turley. If we ever need an anthropologist doctor I'll be sure to keep you in mind!" Flanders says as he offers Snake a handshake
"Thanks. It's been cool meeting you dude." He comments as he responds in kind.
"Please, call me Ned." Flanders smiles as he gets up and walks with him outside the office.
(Snake Jailbird Mechanical Breakdown:
-Snake is a strong Intrigue Hero with a side focus on Learning!
-Snake has a bonus to getting away with theft!
-And theft in general!
-He's also an apt anthropologist!)
A few hours passes and Flanders can hear someone else knocking.This time some heavier knocks, stronger than the ones before can be heard. "Now then let's see who's next-"
A few Minutes later…
"...Ach I'll kill that bastard burns for £50, another £100 for capturing Smithers and £150 for killing him too!" The red bearded Scotsman, who Flanders is pretty sure works at the Simpson's kids school says upon sitting down In the chair in front of him. He has been ranting for a while now.
"Um…Mr Simpson is not looking for anyone to kill Burns for him."...At Least he doesn't think Mr Simpson is.
"You're not?!" The Scotsman says dejected. "Ach! And there I was hoping that I could find a new job." He comments as he hits his knee. "I've been out of one since the school and my beloved shack was destroyed yer see…"
"That's terrible to hear!" Flanders says as he shows surprise on his face. Willie then snaps his fingers, an idea entering his mind.
"Say yer wouldn't be looking for a groundskeeper by any chance?" He questions, but before Flanders can answer, Willie continues talking. "Am great at that! And fighting too! Yer need someone's ass kicked? Cause Willie will give them a good old Glasgow Kiss!" The Scotsman says excited as he smirks. "Am also good at peeping on people if that's what yer need." The man now known as Willie says leaning in towards you whispering the last part.
"...we will keep you in mind."
As Willie steps out of the office, Flanders can hear a man yell a distant "GADZOOKS!!!"
(Groundskeeper Willie Mechanical Breakdown:
Strong Martial and Stewardship hero!
Willie gets a bonus to all handyman work actions he partakes in!
Bonus to spying to people!
He is Scottish!!!)
Flanders was just returning to his office from a bathroom break, with a spring in his step and a smile on his face. So far, he had several good candidates interviewed, though some of them were…a bit questionable, he was positive any of them would be a great fit for the company.
As he unlocked the door and stepped into his office a sight greeted him that made him pause. Sitting there already in front of his desk was a man almost all of Springfield was familiar with, for one reason or another.
"I… was certain I…left the door unlocked before leaving?" Flanders says unsure while giving a quick glance to said door.
"Oh no, you are correct, it was." Said the man sitting relaxingly, while taking a puff from his cigar and passing a hand through his well groomed grey hair. "But I had a spare key, so there's that." He says as he shows an exact copy of your key, then pockets it.
"Now please, take a seat, we have some…things to talk about." The man said, putting a little pause to his speech before continuing. "I have come with a nice business proposal."
Flanders cautiously walked forward and took his place. He starts feeling nervous at seeing one of the most dangerous criminals recognized in Springfield.
"Sooo… what can we do for you Fat Tony?" He asks while clasping his hands together. Him being boss of the Springifield Mafia was some sort of open secret here in the city, and it didn't paint a good picture that he managed to get here unnoticed.
"I heard through the grapevine that old snake Burns wasn't in charge of things anymore and I couldn't help but come take a look y'know?" Fat Tony comments in a nonchalant way as he takes another puff of his cigar. "Was really surprised when I found you, sitting here instead of that bootlicker Smithers."
"Y-Yeah, it was a bit of a sur-surprise for me too." The Protestant answers quickly, starting to sweet a little. "It is really weird entering the office and seeing Mr Simpson sitting there. Still, if I dare say, I think we have been doing really well so far." He says with a bit more enthusiasm in his voice, though how much is real and how much is forced is anyone's guess.
"Right, right. I've seen the crews working on the docks, really decent work." The mob boss nods his head. "Though I saw you were looking for new hires, and here I was passing by and through. "Oh Geez, maybe I should lend a hand, maybe offer some of my experience… if you catch my drift."
"Are…you asking…for a Jo-" "Business Proposal". Flanders began saying, but The italian gave a cutting reply, still in a relaxed manner.
"I don't mean to disrespect you Sir, but don't you have your mafia to run?...Speaking of which, where are your henchmen that always hang around you?" Ned says as he look around the office, hoping that a mafioso doesn't pop out of nowhere to scare him.
Upon hearing that, anger flashes in Fat Tony's face for a few moments, but then it's filled with regret. He slumps in the chair as he takes another drag from his cigar. "Unfortunately the Springfield Mafia has been dead for a while now." Surprise appeared on Ned's face and he doesn't know what to say. Fat Tony takes that chance to keep talking.
"It was that Dome, let me tell you, that stupid glass thing." He rants as he finishes smoking his cigar and immediately takes another alongside a Zippo, and with practiced motions, lights it on and starts smoking another one.
"After a few weeks trapped resources started to get a bit tight and the other criminal groups were getting a bit antsy. They thought we were hoarding all the good stuff, but let me tell you know, we were dealing in the same boat as everyone else." Another puff of his cigar, the smell of smoke was starting to become heavier in the room. "Then one day, several of them small fries had the smart idea of joining together and started demanding we hand over the good stuff! I tried to tell them we were almost out, same as them! But did they listen to me? NO!" He shouts while slamming his fist into Flanders desk so hard the poor thing creaked a bit. A snarl can be seen in the mafioso's face.
"It was a bloody massacre that day, it took a while to be able to hide the bodies, even with the quarantine going on." He continues the rant, Flanders doesn't know what to do but keep listening to him. "Me and Tightlips went through dozens of them before they learned the lesson. But at the end…the damage was done, we took some hefty losses." He sighs sadly.
"Most of our members were dead or left, trying their luck for themselves, we lost the club, most of our business went bankrupt because nobody had money to buy! But…the worst thing was when DiMaggio disappeared with all of our money, after the dome was blown, damn that italian Stereotype! After that… we were truly done." He finishes his rant, a defeated expression appears for a moment, then its replaced with what Flanders can describe as pure sheer determination.
"And so I come here…Let me be clear, I'm offering my services for free and all I ask is that your boss…lends a hand and help me get the mafia back on its feet." The mafioso says while leaning on the table, looking at Ned right in his eyes. "I would own one for your boss, and you know us italians! We always pay our debts…one way or another."
"What makes you think we would accept your help? You guys have been pretty sleazy with your deals before, I've heard the rumours." Flanders says, finally finding his voice, with a bit of a glare.
"Honestly, you guys could use the help. You and your boss haven't played this game before, right?" He says with a smirk. "Trust me, you will need someone a bit…more experienced with the dealings."
He then gets up, takes out a pen and writes out something quick on a piece of paper, he then tosses it on Flander's desk. "My contact info, I'll be waiting for you to call…though don't make me wait too long, that would be just…rude." He says as he drops the cigar to the ground and stomps on it.
And with that, He leaves the office, leaving Flanders alone with his thoughts and a piece of paper.
(FAT TONY MECHANICAL BREAKDOWN.
-Martial/Intrigue focused character.
-Stewardship side focus!
-Specialization on criminal actions!
-He will expect Abe's help to grow the Springfield Mafia back to its former glory if hired. Not following on that would be…unwise.
-(You guys need to at least, every one of three turns to take a national action(s) or take a personal action focused on helping Fat Tony, like helping recruit members for the mafia, set up their usual business, get rid of any competition, or things like that. If this is not followed, expect heavy opinion loss from him.)
-Helping grow the Mafia will unlock stat boosts and traits for Fat Tony as well as raise opinion! (Heavy investment/high rewards Hero unit!) )
QMS NOTE:
You can vote for two heroes to be recruited this turn.
Any hero not picked today can still be picked on the following turns using one of Abe's personal actions! (No roll required). Though if you wait too long, some heroes might not be available for recruitment later. (Fat Tony…hint, hint.)
And that's all for this update!!!! Thanks for waiting!
(...Did you seriously think that was all?)
As Flanders finishes up writing his reports of the candidates so far, his door slams open! The first man that came to visit today, Frink, runs towards Flanders, grasps his shoulders and holds onto him, seemingly out of breath.
"Uff, uff…uff." The man in the lab coats gasps, panting out of breath."Uh hello...I've decided…I would like to work here actually."
"You guys have the best laboratory equipment I've seen so far in ALL OF Springfield! I must work here!!!" He says as he shakes Flanders.
Well now, this is a lovely surprise.
(PROFESSOR FRINK MECHANICAL BREAKDOWN:
-Strong Learning and Stewardship Hero!!!
-Heavy Bonus to all rolls that involve building or inventing something!
It was already getting dark when Flanders arrived at the cemetery. Flanders couldn't stop the grimace that came from his mouth at seeing the lugubrious sight that awaited him.
As Ned walked by the now familiar road to his destination, he looked around, observing all the gravestones—the old ones that were here for some time now and the new ones that came after the Dome Incident. It filled his heart with sadness to see how such a disaster ruined the lives of so many people. As he passed the gravestone of one "Nicholas Riviera", Ned gave a quick prayer in his mind to his Lord, hoping that there was a spot in Heaven for all the deceased.
His weary steps eventually led him to the reason he visited this place. A gravestone, not different from the other ones that filled this place, but still one that had an important place in Ned's heart. There was a name engraved in the stone:
Maude Flanders (1958–2000)
Flanders gently sets down the bouquet of flowers on the tombstone and takes out a bible, but instead of opening it, he just holds it tight against his chest while taking a deep breath. A comforting feeling starts to arise from inside his body, making the uneasiness he felt since he stepped into the place go away.
"Hello Maude it's been… a long time, isn't it? Hehe."
A momentary surge of regret surges in his heart. Good lord, Flanders couldn't actually remember the last time he actually visited her grave, it had been months at this rate, he was sure. Things in Springfield have been just…to difficult for Ned to go visit her. Between taking care of his children and dealing with the Leftorium closing, he had his hands full. Still, that didn't stop him, he was here now, at the very least.
"These last few months have been very rough, dear. The Lord has really been putting everyone's fate to the test. It's really surprising the ways he can test us, you know?"
Ned allows himself to crack a smile.
"Can you really believe that they tried to put a dome over the city? That seemed straight out of one of those cartoons that children like to watch, right?"
He lets the smile remain a few more seconds before it disappears, a sigh taking its place. He grabs the Bible and holds it in front of him. His hand caressed the cover of the book.
"I was able to keep Rod and Todd safe during all of that, I managed to keep them from seeing the worst of things. People…got really desperate at the end of that. Luckily, our neighborino Homer came through for all of us! Amazing right?"
Ned looked to the side, watching the rows of graves that filled the place.
"I wish I could tell you after the dome blew up that things returned to normal, but… not quite yet dear. Things are gonna take a bit more time before they get back to normal, but I think we are on the right track." Ned continued as he noticed clouds starting to appear in the night sky.
"Things do seem to be getting better, after the Leftorium closed I managed to land a new job, that's quite the story to… tell," Ned stopped speaking as he let out another sigh and his face dropped a bit. He gave another glance to see if there was someone else around. After making sure he was alone he continued.
"I still miss you Maude…a lot. During these trying times, I wished so hard that you were here with me." Ned clutched the Bible so hard that it was up to anyone's guess if his fingers would break first, or the book. "When the riots began and people started getting crazy I didn't know what to do. If it wasn't for our children I'm afraid Satan could have managed to tempt me."
And though Ned thought he was alone, there was, in fact, someone else listening, an uninvited guest so to say. Though to be fair, he was here way before Ned arrived.
"Even so, I still keep praying, my faith for our Lord as strong as ever and in the end, he answered all my prayers."
Ned gave a mix of a chuckle and a sob as he remembered how the glass prison cracked that day, showing that those nightmarish days were nearing their end. "It did make me realize how…lonely I've been since your departure though. Even with the kids and the rest of Springfield here for me, it hasn't been the same without you."
So engrossed in his monologue Ned was that he didn't notice one of the nearby graves started to tremble.
"I…I think it's time to move forward. Announce to the world that Ned is on the market once again! After all… love is not only for the young right?" Ned gave a small smile as he knelt in front of the grave. "I hope that you can give your blessing from the Lord's side." He then got up and gave her wife's grave one last look.
"It was great talking to you again Maude, I will do my best to visit more often, but it seems the next weeks are gonna be very busy. Mr. Simpson seems to have big plans for the city." Flanders gave a melancholy look on his face before it was replaced by his usual smile.
Unnoticed to him, the earth around the grave started to shift, menacingly, without him the wiser.
"Man, it is getting late, better head back home fast, I need to make dinner for the kids." Ned comments as he makes his way back to the entrance. By now, the clouds had covered the whole sky, even blocking the light of the full moon.
"Wohin glauben Sie, dass Sie gehen, mein guter Herr?" A voice whispered so low, breaking the silence and early aura of the night.
Ned stopped, surprised, as he looked around the graveyard. "Did I just hear someone mutter in German?" He gave a full 360º but wasn't able to find anyone else. "Eh, it might be just the wind." He continued his walk towards the exit.
Suddenly… Ned heard a loud noise behind him. Looking back, he saw a hole in the ground, from one of the graves. And poking from that hole was a sickly and rotten hand.
"For decadez I've been dorrrmaaaant." A rough, German voice came out from the hole. Ned couldn't contain the fear in his heart, a cold sweat breaking over his entire body. "Vo darez awaken me from my zzzzlumbeeer?" The voice continued, as a body could be seen climbing from the hole.
Ned started to back away, but after a few steps, he stumbled and fell. Frightened, he still kept backing away crawling. "L-L-Lord, pl-please, protect m-m-meeee!" He stuttered as he continued moving back, while grasping a cross he took out of his pocket, aiming it at the being that was slowly getting out of the ground.
"I am afraid zat god iz not here, hehe." The stranger said as he rose out of the hole and stood to his full height. The darkness of the place made it hard for Ned to fully see them "Itz only you and ich." The being said as he started walking forward, towards Ned.
"It iz I, ze one and only, Kaiser Villhelm II!"
Lighting seems to strike out of nowhere, illuminating the area and allowing Ned to have a clear view of the man(?), if only momentarily and what he saw scared the hell out of him. Rotten grayish flesh could be seen, which was wearing an old and deteriorated German Uniform, with several medals attached to it, rusted and damaged. A gray musty mustache accompanied the rotten and grinning face of the being.
"B-Begone evil one! There's no p-place for y-you here!" Ned said, scared and on the ground, while still aiming the cross at the apparent zombie(?). "Go back to Satan, you f-fiend."
"Oh, trust me. Zatan could not hold me zere." The zombie Kaiser said as he approached Ned, every step he took caused all the bones in his body to make harsh creaking sounds. "I zhould zank you, my young man. itz because of you I managed to fully avaken!" The zombie said as he raised both of his arms in the air, one arm shorter than the other.
"ME?! What in the fiery pits of hell are you talking about?" Ned said a bit offended, his fears ignored for a moment.
"Vell, you see my vell moisturized mustached friend. Your deep and emozional speech voke me up from my lethargy. Vor a few months now, my zoul and body been vaiting for someone to disturb it. And zats youuuuuu!" Kaiser says as he points a finger from the larger arm toward him. Ned could do nothing but stare in abject horror.
"And now, iz time for me to accomplish my mission. I vill clear my name, become the Kaiser again and bring glory to meeee. Soon, ze fourth Reich will begin!" The german said with an air of confidence as he stared deep into Ned's eyes.
And the only thing Ned could do as the zombified German proclaimed his intentions to the world was…
"Um… you sure you want to do that?" Ned said, intrigued and questioning the zombie's motives.
"Vhat? Of course! That's ze only reason my zoul iz still posezzing this putrefacted corpse!" The Kaiser said indignant.
"I..I know, it's just…from what I remember from the history books things didn't go your way while you held the crown." Ned said as he rubbed his head a little, still a bit skittish around the literal zombie. "You could…not do that? Also… last time I checked, Germany no longer has royalty, it might be kind of awkward having a zombie as a leader."
"...Of course, I have to do zat!" The Kaiser said, but it could seem he was a little doubtful. "I need to zet zhings right…Ozervise, vhats the point of being here. I…vould have nothing elze!" He said with a sad look on his rotten face.
Ned looked at the Kaiser with a bit of pity and understanding. "Is there really nothing else you want to do?" Ned says catching the Kaiser's attention. "I'm…going to ignore for a moment that you are a zombie, but, there has to be something you didn't get to do while…alive?"
"Mmm.." Kaiser thought as he stroked his mustache, face in full thought. "I did alvays vanted to be a cowboy." The zombie comments while looking at the ground. "But how could I achieve zhat now? Look at me!" He says as he motions to…well, his literal rotten corpse.
"Um…perhaps my boss could help you?." Ned says in a dubious tone. "We would gladly make…the arrangement."
"Vonderwar! Take me to your leader zhen." Kaiser says with a commanding tone.
"Oh of course!" Ned says quickly. "It would be our pleasure! Though…It is kind of late. Also a Saturday." He says sheepishly. "You would have to wait until Monday for Mr. Simpson to be available."
"Scheiße!" Wilhelm II exclaims. "Fery vell. Zhen I should vait until zhen. Let'z go to your abode, I vill stay vith you meanvile." Kaiser says in a definite tone, while walking up to Flanders, still in the ground, and offering a hand.
"I..can't just bring you to my home!" Ned says apprehensive. "I have so many questions! Just how in the Lord's name are you here? Zombies are just a product of Hollywood!" Ned exclaims as he takes the offered hand and manages to get up.
"Magic." Kaiser answers nonchalantly.
"Magic isn't real! Don't bring that Harry Potter nonsense here!" Flanders said annoyed.
"I don't know vat zis "Potter" zhing is, but Magic is fery real," the Kaiser comments as he starts walking towards the exit, "come on, ve don't have all night. Ve need to move before more of ze sleeping souls here avaken."
"Wait what? There can be more of you guys?" Flanders says scared, while looking back at Maude's grave, alarmed.
"Maybe?" Kaiser just shrugs his shoulders, making more creaking sounds. "If the zouls had grudges or unfinizhed business, zhere's a chance. Zhey vould need a stimulli from outside to vake up though."
"Oh no…holly moly." Flanders said as he stared at the bunch of graves around him and with a gulp, started running to catch up to the zombified Kaiser. He would need to inform Mr. Simpson soon!
After a few minutes, they reached the entrance. "I nefer heard your name, Herr…?" Kaiser Willhelm comments as both of them stand in front of the gates.
"Oh…It's Ned. Ned Flanders."
"Herr Flanders then. Let me introduce myself again. I'm Kaiser Villhelm II, a pleasure."
He offers Flanders a handshake.
"Hi diddly ho…Kaiserino?" He says with an unsure tone as he grasps the handshake.
The night didn't go as Ned expected. Not one bit. Still, It wasn't so bad, or so he thinks as both if them got in the car, the Kaiser amazed at the sight of such a thing… Ned didn't have the slightest idea how he was gonna explain any of this to his children… or to his boss.
REWARD:
Ned had a heartfelt talk! He is now more motivated than usual! Ned gets a +5 to next turn's Personal action, as well as whatever National action he is assigned to, if he is assigned to one. New personal actions for Ned unlocked!
You learned that you might have a zombie issue soon… if you don't take precautions.
Ned has met the Kaiser himself! Though a zombie, this man is ready to live some more!
Kaiser Willhelm recruited as a hero unit! (Didn't see that one coming, did you?)
Big changes are happening in the entertainment sector as Leviathan Entertainment, subsidiary of Leviathan Corp, announced the recent acquisition of Big Animation studios. The ironically small enterprise got its start in the direct to video market before pivoting to web animation right before traditional animation became…. Less popular. Despite this BA has still been chugging along, and that tenacity has seemingly been rewarded with talks of LE sponsoring a new original IP. The animation community is looking on with interest.
DEI (Doofenshmirtz)
Upgrade Normbots DC 50
Result: ???+??= Critical Success!
A few weeks back the pharmacist got into another debate with that Syndrome guy. Saying that his "Normbots" were better than Syndrome's Omnidroids. Syndrome replied with several posts full of laughing and condescending words. He claimed that those smiling buckets of screws were one of the most basic things he had ever seen and dared Doofenshmirtz to do something better.
Doof took that challenge somewhat personally from what you were able to see.
Just a few days ago, Doof proclaimed in social media that his Normbots are "better than ever!"...and it shows. New and upgraded models of those robots can be seen patrolling the streets. Doof released some schematics as well as some videos showcasing the abilities of his new models.
And if Frinks excited and labored breathing are anything to go by at seeing those things in action, those robots are the real deal.
Post in social media in favor of Doofania.
DC 60
Result: ???+??=Success…wait…Critical Success!?
Doofenshmirtz has been very active on social media apparently. According to your reports, for several months now he has been sending lots of messages to that green lady about giving him the "Final piece of Doofania". So far Shego had been just ignoring those messages. That changed a while ago when on one occasion she answered back one of the posts, asking for even one reason why she should humor him. After posting that, the pharmacist went silent for a bit, not answering or posting anything, according to other posters, that seemed like a red flag.
No one was expecting when the guy suddenly broke his silence…by posting a musical video! It was named: "10 REASONS WHY I SHOULD HAVE THAT TERRITORY AND LET DOOFANIA PROSPER!". Though the name was excessively wrong, no one can deny it was quite catchy. The song, special effects and choreography used were simply jaw-dropping!
The craziest thing was that people loved it! There's been some big support for this. #LetDoofBeKing has been making big waves. People really liked the promises Doofenshmirtz seemed to make in his song, of which there were some like: #3) All Vending machines will be decommissioned and made so whatever they sold is free to take. And #5) All citizens of Doofania will have free Doonkelberry cake for dessert every day.
So far, Shego hasn't posted anything on social media since the video was released. Who knows what will happen next?
Doofainian immigration
DC 80
Result: ???+??=Success!
While Doofenshmirtz dominates the web, doofainia has also been seen making more traditional forms of publicity, making multiple "immigration" advertisements starting Norm Prime
The shot begins with a door. It has a plaque that reads [NORM] just under a mysterious green bulb. The door opens to a familiar smiling face. "Hi! My name is Norm Doofenshmirtz the second: the first!". He walks out, revealing the closet is within Dr Doofenshmirtz's lab.
"Me and the other norms have been working hard to make the adhocratic corpo-dictatorship of doofainia into the best place it can be!" He walks out of the lab and onto a terrace with a clear view of the Danville skyline, coming to a stop on the center of a perfectly circular and incredibly dark scorch mark.
"But a perfect place isn't complete without people to live in it, so come on down! The more the merrier!" Norm activates his rocket boots and takes to the skies
"We've got cheap bratwurst!" Norm gestures to a brat factory.
"Rapidly developing infrastructure!" Norm quickly passes by what look to be a bunch of normbots and a pair of school children(???) working on a track.
"And more!" Norm twirls into the sky to show off the cityscape.
"So why live under the thumb of a stagnant, oppressive oligarchy with transient personal freedoms when you can live in a fun dictatorship!"
The papers are calling these simultaneous campaigns an ingenious sociological 1-2 punch
DRAKKTECH (Shego)
Lobby Against the SRA DC 70
Result: ???+??? = Bare Failure!
Apparently, Super powered beings are heavily regulated by a government decree known as the Superhero Relocation Act, or SRA for short. This has lead to most of them going into hiding or being arrested.
It seems Shego doesn't like this. From what you can gather from research (and a few choice tweets), she believes the SRA is "a bunch of crap whiny beauracrates thought up to make themselves feel better". A bit harsh, but you aren't exactly going to go against someone making fun of the government.
So, Shego sent her top man, One Monte Fisk (better known as Monkey Fist) in her stead to lobby against the SRA on her behalf.
He gave an impassioned speech (made all the more impressive by him having to keep some monkey ninjas on task not causing chaos through some of it) and quite a few politicians seemed on his side, but after hours of serious discussion, very little changed. Though you wouldn't be surprised if this opened people's eyes to a double check on the SRA in the future…
Fund Supervillains DC: 35
Result: ???+??? = Critical Success!
Shego appears to not be too deterred by her seeming failure with lobbying against the SRA. After all, why play by the rules when you can just throw money at people?
While a lot of the Villains certainly have the Super part be… rather questionable (Birthday Bandit??? Really???), Shego seems willing to play ball with them. Now, these are all rumors of course, but It seems pretty obvious who would be most willing to give these fellows the equipment and money needed to be bigger threats.
And bigger threats they are! These newfound Supervillains are robbing banks, committing mass destruction, and even jaywalking! One Chief Cruz has called it "The worst crime spree since before that Dastardly Big Hero 6 was sent packing."
....Whoever the Big Hero 6 are, it doesn't sound good!
It appears things are really heating up in the war between Doof, Shego and Syndrome.
Multiple factories that produce one of Syndrome's most successful products, the Superhero Detecting and Neutralizing Omnidroids, have been attacked. They were all hit with what appears to be flames that melted key components that will take weeks or even months to repair, massively slowing down production.
Syndrome IMMEDIATELY took to social media to point an accusatory finger at Shego, who merely posted a "Heh. Prove it." And then proceeded to ignore the ensuing online Meltdown.
That woman has guts, you'll give her that!
KRONOS CORP (Syndrome)
Sell the omnicubes DC: 60
???+??? = critical Success!
About the only thing going right for Kronos Corp seems to be the release of their new line of omni-cubes. The Omni-Cube model is designed to act both as a support for the greater omni-droids and as a defender for civilians during larger battles with supervillains. Miraculously, the omni-cube factory was one of the ones that wasn't sabotaged, leading to a material surplus sufficient enough to expand production to civil sales. The public applauds, but critics and fans alike are left wondering how many of syndromes current problems could have been avoided if they were released sooner.
Kronos: Sell weapons to the police
120 or 135
out of
????
You can't help but feel angry about this one. Apparently, Kronos worked out some sort of deal where they'd dole out high-tech weaponry to police departments from texas to Colorado.
Dozens of cities, even more towns; and not one of them was Springfield. Middleton got a free shipment of the stuff but you? Nada!
...at least his didn't upstage your donation to the police.
Fight Supervillains DC 80
Result: ??+??= …Critical Failure!!!???
Syndrome wasn't being idle while this new wave of villainy assailed America. He took it upon himself to show those evildoers a lesson they would never forget!
With his tech and experience it almost seemed too easy as he plowed through villain after villain. So far it seemed things were going well…until they took an unexpected turn.
In a surprising twist of events, Syndrome was defeated by…The Birthday Bandit?!
Apparently, Syndrome managed to catch that clown wannabe when he crashed a little kid's party. Syndrome, being the hero he is, intervened to stop that dastardly plan. A curb stomp battle ensued and within moments, all of the clown henchmen were defeated, with the Birthday Bandit seeming to follow the same steps of his henchmen.
Unfortunately, a moment of distraction from Syndrome was all it took for the villain to turn the tables. While Syndrome was busy addressing a news helicopter that flew close by, the Bandit was able to throw the birthday cake that landed perfectly in the tech Hero's face. Disoriented, because of that sugary food, Syndrome flew wildly, until he flew too close to the helicopter and his cape got stuck in the propellers.
…Let's just say that the aftermath of that wasn't pretty. Limbs aren't meant to be bent that way!!!
So far, no news has been given about Syndrome's condition, except that he has gotten out of surgery and is making a steady recovery.
Meanwhile, the Birthday Bandit has received huge amounts of fame and "street cred" from other supervillains.
SPRINGFIELD:
???
Break Sideshow Bob out of Prison.
DC 50
Result: 88+???= Sneakily Critical Success!
Apparently, things haven't been as quiet in Springfield as you have though. It just has been revealed that Sideshow Bob has escaped prison!
There hasn't been a confirmation of how long ago he had escaped, but according to the reports, the fellow hadn't exited his cell in a while, and when the guards came to check on him, they found a carefully hidden hole and just a mannequin of him with the exact appearance!
According to one of the other prisoners, one fox lady, a few weeks ago, she heard some weird noises coming out of his cell in the dead of the night, but when she tried to notify the guards, they just ignored her!
This…is troubling, you might need to investigate this, you don't want that palm tree-haired guy to try anything funny with your family!
Action to investigate Sideshow Bob's breakout has been unlocked!
Burns
Search for ???
DC 0 Higher the better.
Result: 57+???= Great Success.
You finally heard some news about Burns and…you don't know what to think about it?
Apparently, some people saw him and Smithers skulking around the northern side of Springfield. You aren't sure what he could be doing there, but the people that notified you commented that after a few days, they watched him leaving the area and lost complete sight of him.
Something is going on, and you don't have the slightest idea. But at least, you now know your former Squamate is plotting something again.
Burns has ???!
Action to Investigate Burns has been unlocked!
Springfield citizens:
Attempt to fix the city: South Springfield.
DC: 25
Result: 30: Bare success!
The rest of the citizens of Springfield haven't been idle either. They managed to pool their resources together to attempt to fix the south section. Thank God for that, that place was really a fixer-upper.
It took a while, there were some organization issues as well as the usual shenanigans that occur here, but by the end of the month, South Springfield was back in action!
Result: Another section of the city fixed! Dc to fix all the districts at once has been lowered!
Random Event Roll: 92
Captain McCallister came earlier today to thank you for fixing the docks. With that some trade business can properly begin again, he says. Not only that but he also gives you a locket, he said he found it alongside a hidden treasure chest when they fixed the dock, just washed ashore. He told you that's your part of the bounty for making it possible. He also offered his services for whenever you needed a boat, for whatever reasons.
Reward: found a mysterious locket, is it really elegant and you get a weird feeling when holding it! The Sea Captain offers his boat and docks for whatever holds your fancy! Action related to trade in the docks and for the ocean unlocked!
Mondays sucks! That's a thought that keeps repeating in your head as you arrive at your office. When you woke up, you didn't expect to hear the news that Sideshow Bob managed to escape…Again!
Not only that but hearing from Flanders that there might be a zombie infestation is the last thing you wanna hear!
You are going to need to have a long talk with that Kaiser guy to get to the bottom of this. You didn't expect to deal with more of this magic business. Meeting Santa was enough for you!
Still, things seem to be going alright. City is half reconstructed already, and with Flanders' help, you managed to recruit some competent help (You might need to give him a raise, the man needs it).
You are gonna need to spend the next few months fixing the sorry state this power plant is in, but after that, it should be smooth sailing from there. As long as nothing else happens you might enjoy some tranquil time…you just jinxed yourself didn't you?
And your suspicions were proved right when you opened your office doors and saw the very last person you expected to see sitting in front of your office. Heck, you would take Burns in a heartbeat instead of this!
Wearing a brown vest, alongside a pink turtleneck and holding a steaming cup of tea(Where did she get that?) was your ex-wife Mona Simpsons.
"Hello, Abe." She says after taking a sip of her drink. Many emotions pass through you in the second after hearing her after so long. But you don't get time to fully sort them through before she continues. "It's been a long time hasn't it?" She gives you a sad smile.
"I think it's time to catch up…for old time's sake, wouldn't you agree?"
You remain still for a few seconds, no emotions appearing on your face aside from the sounds of your hand gripping your briefcase. You walk towards your desk, sit down and finally have a clear look at your wife after a long time.
"...What are you doing here?" You manage to say it without exploding. So many things you want to shout at her, but you barely manage to keep them at bay. Exploding just like that is something you want to avoid. "Better question, HOW did you get here?"
At that, she just gives a small laugh, hearing her laugh digs out many bittersweet memories from your past, but you push them aside. "Oh, that was easy, you wouldn't believe how many people fall for the "I'm so lost" trick or the "I came to bring my son his lunchbox" routine." She says with a jovial tone that betrays her age as she puts the cup on your desk. "Honestly, Burn's security is terrible, always has been. It's just no one actually dared to steal from him." She comments while looking around the office.
"I'm…working on that. I just had a lot on my plate the last few months." You said crossing your arms and looking away. That brought forth another set of giggles from her. Your fist tightened at that.
Then…silence, no one talked for a few seconds, just… you and her staring at each other. It was getting kind of awkward, to be honest.
Luckily, she was the one that broke the silence first. "Abe.." She begins with that gentle tone that always makes you open up about any issue. "What happened? Not just with you but…all the city." She says as she motions to the window. "Why was the first thing I saw when arriving here that half of the city was in debris? What did Burns do this time?" She asks in a worried tone.
Many thoughts run through your head, many of them just telling her to shut up and kick her out of your office. But you keep a tight leash on them. It was really hard. Many grudges and regrets wanting to burst out and laid it all on her once again. Still, you keep trying to keep things civil. "It was...Homer happened." You say with some shame as she gasps in surprise.
So you told her everything, from Homer's pig contaminating the lake and causing the dome to appear, to how bad things were down, to how things seemed doom, but your son managed to save the day at the very last second.
As you kept retelling everything, many emotions cycled through her face, from anger to shame, and from sadness to happiness.
Then, came the art of how you won that poker game, you still can't believe it to tell the truth.
"And that's how it all happened." You finished as you kept staring at your desk, not able to meet her eyes yet. For a moment, you thought you saw that weird locket the captain gave you that was resting your desk glow, but maybe it was because of the sun? You didn't pay much attention to it.
"I see…" She comments, not saying much either. "Abe… are you going to continue THIS? Being the owner of the power plant, I mean." She asks you with a tone you can't figure out.
"Well…yeah" You shrug, not sure what else to say. "I won this fair and square in a poker game! There's no way I'm letting that snake Burns get it back."
"...I have to warn you, things…are not quite the same as when we were young, Abraham." Mona starts, by using your whole name, something not many people do these days. "I have been outside Springfield, seen how…different America has turned. These are dark times, if you are gonna go through with this…be careful…please." She says looking at you with a mixture of worryness and tiredness. You barely notice it, but you see how hard she is gripping her hands.
You have so many questions you wanted to ask her, like, what other people she had pissed off? What had she seen so far to be so worried? And most importantly, When was she gonna leave again? But you didn't voice any of those questions.
"I may have an idea of…how bad things may be, to tell the truth." You said as you turned your head towards the false wall where Burn's safe was hidden. You still have doubts about how reliable they were. A part of you wanted to consider that like those conspiracy theories the Stonebreakers liked to put out to misdirect people, but you wondered if that was just running from the truth like you had done before.
"I will be careful Mona, one does not make it this old without a few tricks under our sleeves right?" You say in a more jovial tone that you felt. Mona just had a faint smile on her face as she shook her head.
"Very well, I wish you good luck, Abe." She reaches for her bag, but hesitates for a second, before she searches it and takes out a mobile phone, gently putting it on the desk. "That phone has a single number registered, if you need my help with something don't hesitate to call me." She says with a serious tone.
You take the phone and hold it in your hands, watching it. You only nod at her, not knowing fully what to say. You normally wouldn't have anything to do with her, but a part of your mind whispers to you to accept it. Still, there's something gnawing at your mind and you really can't let it go.
"Mona… have you gone to visit Homer yet?"
After she hears that, you see several emotions pass through her eyes. Fear and determination were the 2 most noticeable. "No, not yet, I was planning to visit him after-"
"Don't." You say with too much fierceness and emotion laced in the words. Mona is taken back for a second before her gaze turns to steel, something you recognize from your youth together. Before she can open her mouth and formulate a response you continue.
"Please…no, not this time. Our son has been through a lot these past few months." Whatever strength you had before leaves you and you just lay on your chair while looking at the ceiling. "You…you will leave again, sooner or later, there's no point in trying to fool anyone. And when you leave, if he knows, you will just hurt him again." Your head lowers and your eyes meet her's.
"I know I have no room to talk, but please Mona… I'm begging you, don't."
Mona stays quiet again looking at you. You are not sure how much time has passed when she decides to get up from her seat, and without a word, turns her back to you and begins walking.
You could do something yet, maybe ask Jasper, that mafioso or the literal zombie to stop her, have Flanders talk with her and hopefully convince her, or beg that mad scientist of yours to make something useful for this situation. Anything.
But you didn't, you just stared at her back as she walked towards the door. You couldn't muster the strength to do anything.
When she is about to open it, she stops, and without looking at you, she says. "You are right, you know? There is a good chance that will happen again, but…You are also underestimating how strong our son truly is. From what you told me, he has grown quite a bit. Have some faith in him."
"And Abe…"She then turns her head to you and gives you a warm smile. "You have been doing a good job here, please… keep it up."
After that, she just leaves. And once more, you are alone again in your office. You keep replaying in your head the conversation you just had with her, especially her last words.
A few minutes later, when Flanders comes to your office, asking what are the next projects to focus on, you already have a plan in mind.
Mona Simpson is currently in Springfield! Who knows how long will she remain here?
Mona added as a temporary Hero Unit!
Turn 2
Income: 14
Available National Actions: 1 on each category.
Any action Jasper is assigned to doesn't count for the total action limit.
Flanders gets a +5 to any National and Personal Action assigned this turn.
Martial Actions:
Upgrade your security force. DC 60: Now that you are the CEO of Burns company you can see a lack of…security in the building. Sure there's lots of traps keeping the place secure against robbers, but not much on actual competent manpower. It wouldn't hurt to fix that.
Rewards: increased DC against any attacks made to your company.
Release the hounds! DC 40: Mr Burns' hounds have got a bit lazy and unfit due to the lack of people to chase so they could use a bit of exercise and training to get back into tip top ship and while you're at it why don't you get the rest of security shored up as well?
Reward: Increased DC against assaults and infiltrations attempts against the Power Plant.
Create your own security group. DC 75: Seeing all those caped people and the current situation of America makes you realize that Springfield isn't as secure as you think. Making your own security group seems like a good idea, having people you can count on to protect you and your family in case of trouble.
Reward: Increase of Dc against people/organizations that are attacking/invading Springfield. Further actions unlocked.
Capture Mutant Animals: DC 45: After your son homer dumped all that pig shit in the lake there's been reports of some weird ass animals roaming around the outskirts of the city. So far they haven't proven to be TOO dangerous to the city, but that. May change sooner or later. Deal with it!
Reward: Mutant Specimens obtained for research! City is safer! Unlocks new actions!
Martial: Block Off Access to the Cemetery. DC. 50. So there's a possible Zombie invasion. Right that's a thing now...Until you can figure a way to unzombify them or find our what's the cause, the best you can do is to cordon off the whole are. Nothing comes in...or out.
Reward: Cemetery is blocked off from the rest of the Sprignfield's Citizens until you can solve the zombie issue. Possible relationship loss with the citizens if the cemetery is blocked off for too long.
Diplomacy Actions
Recruit Minions 40
it's always good to have some spare hands for various odd and ends...or "enterprises", as Tony likes to call them. It might be good to snag some for yourself too. (MAFIA ACTION)
Reward: Unlocks a trait for Fat Tony, Unlocks "Buy Weapons for the Mob"
Hire Outside Workers for your Company DC: Variable higher the better. So, with Springfield opening its doors to newcomers comes a slew of people who need jobs. Maybe it's best to give them a chance, but it can't go that badly... Right?
Reward: Options to hire a Canon Character from outside the Simpsons
Reach out to the government. Dc 70. You aren't too keen to reach out to that Damn government after their bullshit with the Dome and their bomb. Even so, the city could use the help of the government, it might be worth setting talks with them. But if they dare to put another dome on the city you swear you are gonna send non stop mail to the president until they apologize!
Reward: begins communication with the government, possibility to collaborate on actions.
Recruit super villains to your retinue DC 70: Some people might think you are going senile for thinking this But jokes on them! You are already senile! Still back to this. You can tell there are some issues you need help with, and that some goody too shoes wouldn't be amendable to doing. Just have to make sure the people you hire won't double cross you.
Reward: Options to recruit a villain cape.
Recruit Super heroes to your retinue DC 60: Apparently with the SRA many super heroes hadn't had a good time the last few years. Having one working for you could not only benefit you in some ways but also help them in these rough times
Reward: Options to recruit a hero cape.
Recruit Criminals DC 60: You know, maybe a sort of reform program could reduce crime instead of just locking people up!
Reward: You form a reform program that adds various criminals from surrounding prisons to your Recruitment list. Increased opinion from people who advocate for giving criminals second chances
Work with Union Members DC: 45 After Burns lost the company, Lenny and Carl formed an union amongst the workers. A bit inconvenient, but probably for the best. You should talk to them.
Reward: You discuss terms with the Power plant's new Union. Increased opinion with said employees. Increased DC against infiltration.
Set up a meeting with a king: though you are skeptical of these guys truly having control of the U.S.A, you can't deny they really can pull their weight around, reaching out to them to collaborate on a project might be hard to do, but if you can manage it, that will open some nifty doors.
Reward: get in contact with a king and open possible collaboration actions with them.
Dc will vary depending in the king/faction:
Doofenshmirtz DC 40
Xanatos Dc 80
Shego Dc 70
Syndrome Dc 90
Judge Doom Dc 80
Shere Khan Dc 60
Glomgold: Dc 70
Stewardship Actions
Just what did burns own? DC: variable. Man, Burn's vault is insanely big, you can believe so much stuff fits in here, and that's not considering other hidden things Burns may have! Taking stock of all of this is important! Who knows what you will find?
Rewards: Knowledge of what burns actually owned, Chances to obtain items and even more income. Possibly more actions unlocked
Establishing smuggling operations (MAFIA ACTION)
DC 80
Illicit trade has taken a massive downturn since the dome; nothing could get out and nobody dared going in with the frankly ludicrous amount of armed guards. Bringing it back would get the mob's blood pumping and help it get back on its feet.
Reward: Fat Tony Mafia's business reestablished, Income gain.
Buy the Itchy and Scratchy show. DC 45: apparently there is this animated show that's been going through some hard times. Apparently it hasn't been earning enough top dollar as always and rumor is it might close down in just a few months. It could be worthwhile to buy it. (Cost 1 Income)
Reward: become the proud owner of the Itchy and Scratchy Show. More actions unlocked, entering business in the show industry.
Support the city reconstruction effort. DC: Varies depending if the district. Choose one:
Northern Springfield DC40 (1 income)
Olden Springfield town Dc 35 (1 income)
All the districts at once: DC 50 (2 income)
Reward: For each district fixed, unlock new actions regarding Different sectors of the city, and increase public options with the city's Citizens.
Bring the power plant up to code DC: 40 Once you were able to see the state of the Power plant you blanched, if the notes are right the plant is seriously under performing. There's lot of security risks that need to be addressed. Better get to it. [Cost 2 income]
Rewards: Company now up to standards, raise public opinion, increase the amount of wealth gained by the Power Plant, increase DC to assault the company and to infiltrate it.
Look into Expanding your business. DC 65: So far your company only supplies Springfield with energy, why don't you check with nearby cities and see if you can arrange a deal to build more plants for them? They get cheap energy at low costs and you get more money! Win-win situation right?
Rewards: Action to build the power plants near the cities, increase in public opinion, increase of more income once more reactors are built.
Invest in Powell Motors DC 45: Your other son, Herb, has a car manufacturing business that has been.... Mixed in terms of success ever since he met Homer. When it's up, it's really up but when it's down, it's really down. Maybe you could help it out?
Reward: Gain Herb's gratitude; Increased income from entering the motor vehicle market; learn some auto repair knowhow.
Pay your Damn Taxes DC: 50 Turns out Burns' company has spent so long not paying it's taxes the IRS is actively suspicious of your attempts to do so. You should probably do so anyway…
Reward: The IRS will not hate you as much, you may gain income from tax returns depending on how well you roll
Upgrade Springfield Prison DC: 60 This prison is quite frankly notorious for even the lowliest criminal being able to escape pretty easily. Some funds so the place is more secure would probably be well spent!
Reward: Upgrade Springfield's local prison. Criminals won't essentially be able to escape with no effort anymore. High DC to get out or to get in.
Stewardship: bribe Quimby DC:5 Now apparently Burns enjoyed a bit of a close relationship with Quimby so you have been thinking why can't you have something similar? It would certainly help if you had the mayor in your pocket and might stop your enemies from using him against you,that is unless they offer him a bigger bribe…
Reward: Quimby bribed, more freedom in actions with Springfield, decreased dc for certain actions involving Springfield,Quimby won't work against you unless offered a bigger bribe. (Note: You will have to keep paying Quimby 1 income per turn to make sure the mayor is kept loyal… until you decide to stop bribing him. )
Engage in Seaside Trade DC Variable (The higher the better)
With The docks up and running, that means a few old seadogs are coming to sell their wares. Maybe you will find something useful!
Reward: Possible new business opportunities unlocked.
Intrigue Actions
An ear to the underground
DC 40/70 Tony handed the notes back with a satisfied smirk. "Thank you, Mr Simpson. I must say, that was quite the enlightening read. Especially since I haven't had the time to keep up with the...hmm, criminal zeitgeist."
Of course, not everything's at the top you know. It's always good to know about what's going on at the bottom floor. And a little up"
"hint hint."
Reward: Learn about the middle and lower echelons of illegality, amongst other things, chances to find about ???
Look into what happened to Radioactive man. DC: ??? Maybe now would be a good chance to look up what happened with that superhero the city used to have, Radio-Man or something? Your grandson made a huge deal about it before he disappeared.
Reward: Find what happened to the radioactive man and clues to find him. Chances to make contact with Radioactive man himself.
Develop traps for the company. Dc 75 You have to admit it. Burns knew what he was doing when designing some of the traps in his office. They are as creative as they are dangerous. Perhaps you could work in spreading that to the whole company? Who knows, it could help in case of burglars.
Reward: increase Dc for enemies to infiltrate or steal things from you. Chances of shenanigans happening.
Infiltration actions
Dc to infiltrate a Kings territory
New York: Dc 80
Doofainia: Dc 70
Middleton: Dc 80
Kronos: Dc 60 (70 if the Hero assigned is a cape)
Zootopia: Dc 45
Calisota: DC 50
Inventco: Dc 60
Cloverleaf: DC 45 (65 if the assigned hero is a toon)
Intrigue: Look into Burns. DC ??? Burns has reared his ugly head around finally. You don't know what he is planning but your gut tells you it isn't gonna be anything pretty... Well, not on your watch!
Reward: Find out what Burn's been up to. Further action possibly unlocked to intervene/act more.
Intrigue: Investigate Sideshow Bob's Breakout DC 100
With Sideshow Bob on the loose, no one is safe, most of all your grandson! Better figure out where he is...
Reward: Find out more information on Bob's whereabouts, possibly unlock further actions related to him.
Learning Actions
Learning: Study Maps of the lands/areas near you DC: 35 Hmmmmm... You never know when you might have to visit nearby areas, you know? Better safe than sorry In case such a visit is necessary...
Reward: Have a better grasp of the geography of various areas around you. Learn about interesting locations.
Upgrade the Plant waste disposal methods. Dc 45. For too long has Springfield been affected by the lax way the Power Plant deal with the radioactive waste, mainly dropping it all in the lake and nearby areas. Have your people find a solution now.
Rewards: Springfield pollution is reduced, public opinion increased, Government opinion increased.
Improve the Safety of your Reactors. Dc 70. From what you have heard, your son has been the cause of several near-meltdowns during the years. From what you've seen there's not much in terms of security systems or protocols. There should be a way to make the system safer right?
Rewards: Dc increase to chances of your Reactor blowing up because of in house failures as well as sabotage attempts.
Upgrade your Power Reactor. Dc 80 From what you can tell, the current process the plant is using is well… It sucks. It generates way more waste and doesn't produce the supposed amount of energy that fission power promises. That idiotic Burns cut too many corners when building it. It's time to fix that. Though caution, it's advised from what the scientists tell you.
Reward: Springfield Power plant stops producing waste. Increase income. Unlock action to research Fusion power.
Learning Action: Research Magic. Dc 80. You are definitely gonna need to look deeper into Magic if you are gonna deal with it in a more frequent manner. There have to be some records that explain more about it, obviously, its hidden from the public but there has to be SOMETHING out there right? Ahhhhh, you kind of wish Santa was here, so you could talk to him about this.
Reward: Abe learns more about Magic. Unlock occult national actions.
Personal Actions:
Abe
Jog your memory. You lived a looong life, and you have certainly see more things that other people have. You just… don't remember it right now. Maybe spending some time thinking about it could help you remember something useful? …What were you thinking of again?
Reward: Chances to unlock new actions, national or personal.
Hit them books. Suppose now would be a good time as any to read some of the books that your granddaughter Lisa has gifted you for your birthdays. There's lots of info you could glean from them.
Rewards: need to take this action 3 times, once taken gain 1d3+1 Learning. (1/3 times)
Hang out with your elders. Even though being the boss of Springfield Nucler Power Plant has occupied much of your time you should give yourself some time to spend with your friends in the retirement home.
Rewards: Abe hangs out with the elders, chance to learn info about things going on in the town or interesting tidbits of info.
Spend time with your son. It's unfortunate that your son doesn't want to spend time with you after the dome accident. Still, you should give it a try to reach out to him and his family.
Rewards: spend time with your son and his family. Chances to recruit Homer as a hero unit. Chances to recruit Marge, Lisa or Bart as a Temp hero unit for next turn.
Get the hounds to like you: Mr burns hounds aren't exactly friendly to most folks and that includes you, so perhaps you should change that.
Reward: Mr Burns' hounds become Abes hounds, obtain two personal guard 'dogs'( if you roll high enough) cripper and badger.
Practice your lying skills. This is the last time you lose to Jasper on Poker Night! You need to get better at faking things. You will get it…somehow.
Reward: increase Abe intrigue stat by 1d2+1 (Needs to be taken twice to complete.) (1/2 times)
Hang out with one of your workers. Perhaps you could use some of your free time trying to get to know one of your workers. Who knows what kind of stuff you may find out! (Can be taken multiple times a turn)
Reward: you get to know one of your hero units better, chance of increased opinion, chance to unlock actions related to the hero. ???
Go look for a fashion designer. Clothes maketh the man. That's something you hear in Tv once and it might have a grain of salt on it. Your wardrobe is nothing to talk home about. Let's do something about it.
Reward: Abe gets a Damn nice suit (cost income). Chances to meet ???
Play Poker: Playing cards is how you got into this mess... But it's just too much fun! Reward: Abe plays Poker with a random group of people. He may gain or lose income depending on the Roll.
Figure out this damn control panel: Burn's had a lot of weird buttons on this thing. You might as well see what they do before you press something you shouldn't
Reward: Office adds defense against attacks made against the Power Plant, stewardship bonus for some actions.
A test of your own medicine 2: alright, itll take a while, but you think You've found a list of medicines that'll be at least close to what you want
Reward: Abe goes and buys actual quality medicine, chances for possible Stat ups! (Learning, stewardship or martial +1)(-5 from a previous failure)
Is this my beautiful house?: Geez this mansion is huge! What the hell are you gonna do with it all? And what kind of rooms did he think he needed?
Reward: better house awareness, very small bonus to next turn's/next 4 personal actions. Chances to find some weird rooms?
Talk with Mona. Your last talk with her didn't end…we're well. One part of you is against it but you know this might be your very last chance to actually make an understanding with her. Only time will tell how this goes.
Reward: Abe makes peace with Mona. Chances to fully recruit her as a hero unit!
Abe personal: meet the general,so apparently the government has sent a new 'hotshot' general to command fort Springfield,perhaps you should go over and have a talk with him and make sure that the government isn't trying to pull a fast one on you.
Reward: Establish communications with the general, ???
Hire someone for the power plant (Can only be taken once per turn):
Current heroes units available for hire:
-Apu
-Snake
-Willie
Spend some time with your sons. Just because you have more… "interesting job" there's no reason to spend more time with your family! You better check on Your kids now that you have some time.
Reward: Flanders spends some time with his sons. Chances to raise opinions of Abe.
Go to Church: Nothing like going to the church and feeling in contact with the Lord! After the Dome incident ended more people seemed to go to church! And you know how people like to blab in those places. Perhaps you could get some interesting tidbits?
Reward: Chances to meet new people and learn some interesting information.
Go to the Gym: Now that you have some free time perhaps you could spend it on the gym. It seems working for Abe might be a bit more physically demanding than your other jobs. Better make sure your muscles are up to the task!
Reward: Martial Stat gain if rolled high enough
Attempt blind dating. Well, you did say it was time for you to be on the market once again! A blind date seems like a nice way to meet new people, what's the worse that can happen?
Reward: Ned meets new people, possibility of shenanigans
Go to the theater and watch a show: it's been a while since you've been to a theater show but now that you have some time and money why don't you go see one?
Reward: Jasper has a good time, chances to meet ???.
To the last man.
This is it, your last chance to find someone from your old platoon. Gears are turning where they haven't turned in years, and you feel this close to a real lead. You don't know whether he's dead or alive; but you'd rather be dead then be kept in suspense
Rewards: Jasper gets in contact with his old platoon squad, unlock ???
Play chess with abe. Abe has complained that you cheat on Poker all the time. That's not true! You only cheat half the time! Still if he is gonna complain too much perhaps you can beat him in another game.
Reward: Jasper plays chess with abe. Possible stat increase for high enough roll.
Profesor Frink: work on one of your inventions. Now that you have an actual lab again, it wouldn't hurt to work on some of your old Projects. Who knows what will you end up creating.
Reward: Frink gets to invent/recreate either one of his old projects or a totally new one.
Spend some time reading the scientific forums. It's been a while since you got in touch with the scientific community online. Who knows what kind of info your fellow scientist might share with you. Who knows, maybe this time you will be able to show "BlueGenius" or "THE Doofacious one" why your are more mad scientist than them!!!
Rewards: chance to unlock more actions, chance to discover learning heroes to recruit.
Frink: give a checkup
A walking corpse is unprecedented, and frankly still a bit hard to belive. You want to study the kaiser and find out how a dead man ticks
Reward: progress towards Frink getting an Occult score?
Find your men(MAFIA action)
Legs. Louie. Johnny Tightlips. They were your best men, which means they had the sense to leave a sinking ship when they could. Perhaps you can convince them to come back now that things are on the upswing.
-[] Find Legs
-[] Find Louie
-[] Find Johnny Tightlips
Reward: different stat and quest bonuses depending on which one you get.
Hang out with Michael. Your son Michael hasn't seen you much lately due to you're 'business' of 'waste management' and you're business with abe perhaps you should fix that by spending time with him.
Reward: Chances for opinion gain!
Visit your cousin fit tony.
It's been awhile since you've seen your identical cousin from San Diego. Perhaps you should go visit him to catch up on old times and to make sure he's not sleeping with the fishes.
Reward: Fat tony hangs out with his cousin, chances to learn interesting tidbits of info.
Look for the Don. (MAFIA action)
After the Dome broke down, no one has seen hide or hair of him. Some people might think he finally bit the dust, but you know different.
Reward: Find where the Don is hiding.
Kaiser wilhelm: find out what happened after you're death, it has been some time since you're death and the world has changed much in that time, perhaps it's time you fill in the gabs in you're knowledge jah?
(Progress bar 0/100)
Reward: Kaiser catches up on modern history. Learning stat increase of 1+1d3
Kaiser: get a check up
Despite *clearly* being dead, Ned Flanders insists that you get a medical check up "just in case"
Reward: learn more about zombism?
Kaiser: get up to date in war tactics.
Apparently there have been a few significant changes to how war is done nowadays. They don't even use horses anymore! How can this be?!
(Progress bar 0/100)
Reward: Kaiser becomes knowledgeable in modern war tactics. Martial stat increase of 1+1d3
Kaiser: Look out for your horse. Your dreams of becoming a cowboy won't be complete without a loyal steed. Luckily you did ask for your horse to be buried alongside you when you died. Hopefully it is in the graveyard too.
Reward: Kaiser gets back his horse!
Find a new home.
So far, Herr Flanders has lent you his couch to sleep. And thought grateful, that can't go on forever. Find a new place you can call home for yourself. Maybe Herr Simpson can lend a hand?
Reward: Chances of Kaiser opinion increase, Kaiser finds a new home.
ADVENTURES:
Once more unto the breach! (Cost 2 income to take)
That wasteland thing that the spook talked you about has been around your mind a lot, especially after Jasper's talk. You know you probably have no business poking your nose there, but you just can't let it go. According to Jasper's reports that place is pretty dangerous to approach without preparations, only a fool would enter that place. Luckily for you, you not only have money to throw around, you don't give a Damm what the government or everyone else tells you. Time to see what has everyone so worried about that place.
Max Hero units that can be taken: 5
Special notes: Abe has to be part of this adventure and automatically becomes the leader.
[X] Plan Building The Foundation
-[X] National Actions
--[X] Martial: Release The Hounds (DC 40) (Jasper Bonus)
ROLL= 30+24(Abe's Martial)+5(Jasper)+0(Jasper Loyalty)=59
Great Success!
You left Jasper with the job of getting those hounds back in shape. They spent too much time lazing around in their homes and some even got fat. That won't do at all!
Luckily, Your good old buddy was able to wrangle those canines rather easily! It just took some quality food, some toys, and some dummy's for target practice before the hounds were back in tip top barking shape! Jasper comments that it takes him back to his rookie days.
It was a job so well done, several of your guards could be seen patrolling by a hound or two during their rounds. You pity whoever tries to break into the power plant now.
Rewards: Hounds retrained and re-added to the security force! Hounds provide a +5 to combat against invaders to the Power Plant and +5 bonus against people/Factions trying to infiltrate the power plant.
Fat Tony had no issues catching all those weird critters roaming around the outskirts of the city. Heck, from what you could tell, he kind of enjoyed himself?
He told you that though the animals themselves didn't seem that aggressive, they did attack quite furiously the workers that he brought alongside to transport them. Though no one got seriously hurt you did have to pay the medical bills of some people that were careless and got too close to the cages and received kisses full of teeth.
Still back to the matter at hand. Fat Tony assures you he was quite thorough on looking for those mutants, there shouldn't be any weird looking animals hanging around Springfield no longer.
Frink was quite excited when the mutants arrived at the power plant. He commented that he wished to study them, saying this was a prime opportunity to see first hand the quick mutations caused by the radioactive waste mixed with all the other contaminants. You have no idea if that's a good idea or not, but he is the one with the lab coat.
Reward: All mutant animals roaming in Springfield have been captured! Frink has taken an interest in this new species of animals. Actions to study the mutant animals have been unlocked!
--[X] Diplomacy: Work With Union Members (DC 45) (Flanders) Roll= 51+13(Abe's diplo)+26(Flanders)+5(Hidely Ho!)+5(Motivated)+2(Loyalty)=102
Diplomatic Critical Success!
You asked Flanders to speak with Carl and Lenny to finally reach an agreement with them. Having half of your workforce not go to work has slowed somewhat productivity, something that needs fixing now.
Luckily, he was able to settle things quite nicely with them. It took some time for talks to settle, but in the end, things reached a nice agreement.
In exchange for the Union to rejoin working in the Power Plant once again Ned offered them not only better salaries, more break times and a game room so workers can unstress. He even managed to replace the old vending machines with new ones. Thanks to that pharmacist in Danville, the prices of vending machines have plummeted to almost 0 dollars! Your assistant managed to get almost 2 warehouses full of them!
They also asked to make sure the power plant has proper safety procedures, in case of an accident (Or a code HOMER, as you found out they address it). Though with the compromises Ned has kept so far they are willing to give you time to have that set up.
Rewards: Power Plant working at full capacity! Workers seem happy with new working conditions! Power plants generate 2 income every 3 turns now!
You have unlocked Carl and Lenny as a trait for the power plant! They give a +5 to all Nuclear related Actions.
--[X] Stewardship: City Reconstruction: All Districts At Once (DC 50) (Wilhelm) Roll= 71+8(Abe's Stewardship)+20(Kaiser)+10(A grandpa to all Springfield)+2(Loyalty)= 111 Lawyering Critical Success!
You asked the Kaiser to help make sure that the reconstruction gets done as soon as possible. Not sure how good of an idea this would be.
Fortunately, Kaiser took the job with stride and a surprising level of focus and professionalism. He promised you results as soon as possible. And holy moly, did he manage that.
Apparently, there's no bigger motivator in life than having a zombie with a cowboy hat and pair of Lugers telling you to keep working. Under the undead german careful rotting eye, no worker slacked off and the project was finished within schedule!
At the end of the month, the city was totally fixed, looking just like always, as if a giant glass dome had never fallen on it.
Also apparently, it seems you own most of Springfield?
…That came as a surprise, but from what little digging you could do it seems there's a law in the city (Even older than you in fact), that whoever gets to fix a building then they become the new owner? Who made these laws?!
Rewards: City finally reconstructed! Thanks to the kaiser carefully and old styled work ethic, 2 income was used! Springfield Citizens Opinion unlocked. Currently Standing at 7/10!
Now that Abe owns most of Springfield, he receives some rent money from their taxes. He now gains 1 income every 3 turns starting next turn!
New actions unlocked!
--[X] Intrigue: Look Into Burns (Mona Simpson):
Dc revealed: Opposite intrigue roll!
Roll: 87+27(Burns' Intrigue)+22(Grimes Jr.)+2(Loyalty)= 138!
Roll 69+16(Abe's Intrigue)+29(Mona)+10(This is Personal)+10(omake reward)+2(Loyalty)= 136. Bare Failure!
You felt nervous when you asked Mona for help. Not for her safety though, your ex-wife is one of the best people you know that can tango with Burns and come out unscathed. But because of how your last talk with her went.
Still, Mona gladly took up the task to find out what that scheming snake was up to. And while she wasn't successful at all in her venture, you did learn some interesting and concerning information.
She was able within a few days to find where Burns was hiding. According to her report, she was able to easily locate Smithers. Apparently, just having a trenchcoat and a fake mustache doesn't make it that hard for people to recognize you when going to a supermarket.
She was able to tail him without an issue, and he led her straight to the docks district, specifically an almost unassuming, abandoned warehouse. At first she wasn't sure if that was the right place but during one of the following days, she saw him and that sleazy snake go out, being picked up by a limo without license plates and return a few hours later.
From what she was able to gather from observing the warehouse, it didn't seem to have any type of guards or security measures, so she took a risk.
She waited until Burns and Smithers left the warehouse again, and tried to sneak inside. Almost immediately things went wrong. She was quickly found out by a man who she had missed during her recon and was forced to escape before she was apprehended by him.
A few hours later, Mona contacted you with her findings, but before you could have Fat Tony and Kaiser storm the place, you received news that the warehouse had "mysteriously" exploded. No one saw how or why it happened, but you could fantom a guess.
Not all seemed lost though, you had your men and Mona search the debris, and you were able to find several semi burnt newspapers about some house robberies that happened in the city from years ago, but they never found the thief, and a a few photos of the Springfield Elementary School, including shots of Bart and Lisa during classes.
Also, thanks to Fat Tony and the help of chief Wiggum, you were able to find who was the man that Mona encountered. It was Frank Grimes Jr. son of the deceased Frank Grimes. Supposedly still in prison for trying to murder your son, he had managed to escape during the quarantine but it never was reported.
You have some pieces of the puzzle to what Burns is currently doing, but you don't know what to do with that just yet. One thing for certain, now that he knows you are into him, that snake is gonna make himself harder to find. You need to prepare for the incoming bites…somehow.
Rewards: You learned Burns has Frank Grimes Jr as a Hero Unit!
Burns seems to be interested in robberies from years ago! You have no idea the reason for that.
He also seems to pay attention to the school your grandchildren are going to. Is he going to target them?
--[X] Learning: Research Magic (DC 80) (Frink) Roll 69+10(Abe's Learning)+35(Frink)+10(Walking Library)+3(Loyalty)=127 Great Success!!!
Continued in interlude…Magic's Scientific Method!
-[X] Personal Actions
--[X] Abe
---[X] Hire Apu. Auto Success
When you contacted Apu telling him that he was hired he burst into tears, blabbering that you wouldn't regret this… at least that's what you thought you heard.
It was quite hard to make sense of what he was saying with all those children screaming and crying in the background.
…Not sure if you should be concerned or not.
Rewards: Apu Recruited as a Hero Unit!
---[X] Talk with Mona 75+10(omake reward)+10(???)=95
Continued in the Interlude: A Not So Simple Discussion
---[X] Get The Hounds To Like You 46+10(Previous experience) =56
75(Reroll Omake)+10 (Previous Experience)=85
Even though Jasper was able to discipline the hounds, there were a few of them that were still somewhat unruly. You decided to handle them specifically. Luckily, you had prior experience training dogs into discipline canines!
It was a slow thing, gaining their trust, but you had to spend days waiting in the living room of the retirement home for your son to come visit. You had patience for years!
By the end of the second month, not only were the hounds more receptive to you, even allowing you to pet them as much as you want, there were 2 of them that liked you so much they didn't want to leave your side!
Rewards: Abe familiarizes himself with the Hounds! The dogs like him more than they ever did to Burns (Not much of an accomplishment to be honest.)
Abe has unlocked Crippler(one of the Hounds) and Badger( A badger that somehow snuck into the power plant?) as a trait! They can be taken to some Adventures with Abe and give +15 bonus to martial combat rolls and +10 to some related Intrigue rolls.
---[X] Spend time with your son=25
You tried to approach your son Homer, but your attempts were…less than successful. He seemed to ignore you every single time when he was at work. And when you tried to go to his house to talk to him you saw him…with Mona.
You weren't ready to face both of them at once so you stopped trying…at least for now.
--[X] Flanders
---[X] Spend Time With Your Sons 23+5=28
Ned tried to hang out with his sons, and you allowed him to do so. You knew a thing or two about wanting to connect with family, after all....
Unfortunately, Rodd and Todd had apparently gotten the flu, so Ned had to spend less time actively hanging out and more time making sure they were taken care of. Unfortunate, but that's how the cookie crumbles sometimes.
....Now you want a cookie.
--[X] Jasper
---[X] To the last man=100+10(Omake Bonus!)=110!
…Okay then. Continued in the interlude: "War… War never changes."
--[X] Fat Tony
---[X] Find The Don=28
Fat Tony took some time off from work to "assist an old friend". You aren't 100% sure at first what he means, but you quickly discover the Don has gone missing, so you decide to not further question it, both out of politeness and plausible deniability.
Fat Tony returns before long, a little grouchy and admits he found no good leads. He thanks you for the lack of questions in regards to taking that time off, however.
--[X] Frink
---[X] Give Kaiser A Checkup=20
See Kaiser's Personal below.
--[X] Wilhelm
---[X] Test the Limits of your Zombie Body (Originally: Get a Check up)=96
"Thank you once again for coming in on such short notice. I would love to devote more time to this, but Mr Simpson has been quite insistent that I find 'evidence of magic', whable! Frink's left eye twitches for a second. "Despite giving me almost nothing to work with." He mutters in a really low voice, that your zombie ears almost don't hear it.
You, Kaiser Wilhelm The Second, simply take a bemused swig from your flask, savoring it's sweet burn as it travels on your rotten throat.
"You don't say. Too bad you don't have any volunteers. " You can almost feel him roll his eyes at that: Frink has been crystal clear on how he feels about you claiming to be "the living dead". But you just can't help yourself; you love pushing his buttons.
"Yes, well, a proper study needs more than one man's anecdotal evidence to draw a conclusion from. I won't pretend to understand the intricacies of your physiology, but that hardly means its magic."
"Vhat are you talking about? We've learned tons about my body! I don't sleep, I don't need to eat or drink, I don't get tired, I-" You start explaining the awesome benefits of your zombie body.
"But we don't know why!" Frink exclaims as the palm of his hand hits the desk, making it shake. "All my general equipment says you're barely above the points of advanced tissue and organ failure! But somehow, you're as hale as a horse! In fact, you could probably lift one over your head!" Frink rambles as he grips his head in exasperation.
"Oh, you hafe no idea how right you are!" You said as you gave a small laugh as you took a swing from your flask.
"…What did you do?" Frink says with a deadpan tone as his left eye continues to twitch noticeable behind his glasses.
"Vell, Herr Docktor, I decided to put this zombie body of mine to Ze test." You comment with another sip of your Frisk. "Let's see…Vhat did I do again?" You tap your finger against the desk as you try to remember all the tests you did so far.
Kaiser could be seen doing an obstacle course like those of the military on the Power Plant' parking lot. The obstacles are mostly made of random junk, and several workers can be seen cheering on the German as he finishes the track without breaking a sweat.
Next, Kaiser Wilhelm can be seen standing a wall, a target sight glued to his chest and on the other side, a few of the same workers holding several guns and one of them a crossbow. All of them stare at Kaiser nervously.
Then Kaiser nods at them, and with a gulp, all begin firing at Kaiser, aiming for his chest. The kaiser just stood there, taking all the shots, seemingly not bothered by it. He only looks annoyed when the crossbow guy misses his shot, the arrow barely grazing his ear. But aside from that, he is totally unharmed. The bullet wounds could be seen closing slowly.
Finally, the Zombie German can be seen in a Boxing Match against Myke Tyson on a ring. The heavyweight boxer rains blow after blow on Willhelm, who because of his shortened arm, can't defend properly against the professional, but none of his punches seems to have any effect on him.
Tyson then gives a strong right hook to Kaiser's face, but to the surprise of everybody, he hits him so hard, his head spins a whole 360º degrees.
The public and Tyson himself can just stare agape at what just transpired, and the zombie uses this chance to land a mean hook on Tyson, knocking him out and winning the match.
"Zhat Tyson fella vas fery good fella. Promised to keep quiet about the match." You finish your experiments with a heartful laugh. "Not only zhat, I found a neat trick too!"
Frink can be seen seething in his seat. His hands are squeezing the edge of his desk so hard it seems he might break it. But then the scientist takes a deep breath and relaxes.
Sighs "Fine now, what was the last thing you mentioned?" He asks with both of his hands covering his face.
"Oh ja, I've been drinking rat poison to see if it would work on me." You comment with another swing of your frisk, filled with some rat poison you found on Herr Flanders house.
Frink renews his seething at hearing that, harder this time.
"But I wanted to show you this!" You make a finger gun gesture with your good arm and aim it at one of the walls and concentrate hard.
At first, nothing seems to happen, but after a few moments, your hand seems to get enveloped in an eerie grey aura. You can feel a buildup of some force at the tip of your fingers. Satisfied, you take aim at the wall and let loose.
Suddenly a small ethereal blast launches from your fingers and towards the wall. Unfortunately, the blast doesn't move more than 3 feet before disappearing.
You slouch on your seat, the blast somehow taking the breath out of you. "How you like zhat, Docktor? Learn zhat trick after weeks of practice." You breath out, suddenly, it's like you are in your old alive body from all those years ago. "Hafe to dank Herr Flander's kids for this. Zheir "fideo game" of some cups using finger guns to kill zhe Defil vas an inspiration."
Frink just stares at you for a moment, before getting up from his seat and starts walking towards the door.
"Tell Mr Simpson I'm going home early, I'm done for today." He says slouching, with a defeated tone. And with that, he exits his office.
"You know I'm right! It's magic!" You shout out to him.
Frinks frustrated shout is all the answer you need to know you are right.
Rewards:
Learned more about Kaiser's zombie condition! Unfortunately, Professor Frink couldn't fully get an explanation of Kaiser's zombie state.
Professor Frink is a little bit Frustrated right now…He isn't taking the notice of magic well.
Kaiser has learned more about the limits of his zombie body! He gets a +1 to martial! He also has managed to develop somehow the ability to use magic finger guns! You have no idea how this is possible and are almost as frustrated as Frink!
Kaiser has gotten +1 occult and learned the trait. "Zom-Boy!" Kaiser gets to add ¼ of his occult to martial combat rolls! Train this mystical aspect of Kaiser to raise the bonus it provides!
Frink's denial with magic will continue in the interlude "Magic's Scientific Method."!!!
A Not So Simple Discussion
You walked with slow but determined steps. Your chest felt heavy, like an iron ball
and chain that was wrapped around it, and got heavier the closer you got to your
destination. The more you pushed on, the more doubts entered your mind, trying to
convince yourself that this was a horrible idea, and to give credit to your mind, it
probably was. But you weren't going to stop this time. This conversation had several
decades in the making.
As you crossed the streets, you were able to see how well of a job the Kaiser did.
Houses and establishments that were only rubble before were repaired as if nothing
ever happened. People went about their lives normally, like if the Dome incident was
now a far way dream, the remaining vestiges of the act now foregone. You wished
you could just forget something like this, but your mind still keeps lingering on that,
the catalyst to your new life.
And as you arrived at your destination you took a moment to compose yourself, and
with a deep breath, marched forward. The target in clear view.
Mona was sitting in one of the benches of one of the reconstructed parks, she was
intermittently feeding some birds with some bird food taken from a bag at her side,
while watching a family having a picnic. As you followed her gaze and stared at the
family, you found your eyes glued to them, as they laughed while eating, having a
good time enjoying each other's company, a feeling you couldn't quite place yet
worming inside your heart.
With a heavy sigh you pushed it to the side, you couldn't allow yourself to be
distracted now. And without further ado, you continued your walk, a few seconds
later, your ex-wife gaze landing on you, her relaxed posture not changing, but your
old war veteran instincts could tell she was surprised and wary of seeing you.
"Hello…Mona" You said with the friendliest tone you could muster, giving a smile to
her. As you approached her bench, the birds that were gathering around her
suddenly flew away.
Mona just stared at the birds fleeing for a second before smiling back at you. "Hello
Abe, it's nice to see you again." She motioned to the empty side of the bench. "Want
to take a seat?"
You just nodded and took the seat, and for a while neither of you said nothing, just
continuing watching that family picnic. You weren't sure what Mona felt at seeing them, but for you, it reminded you of simpler times, if there were simpler times in
your life.
It didn't take much time for the birds to return, pestering Mona for more food, and
she happily complied, grabbing a handful of seeds from a bag and throwing it in front
of you both, the chirping of the birds were the only sound that could be heard here.
"What brings you here Abe?" Mona asks, breaking the silence, you turn to look at
her, but she isn't looking at you, instead her eyes are still on her family, and the birds
around you. "I would think you have more important things to do. How are you liking
Burns' job so far?" She asks with a teasing tone.
You could only let out a groan at hearing that. You cover your face with your hands
as you let out a sound of pure agony. "It's a mess, let me tell you! That slippery jerk
couldn't have let me with more job if he wished." You for the umpteenth curse Burn's
and his greed.
According to Flanders and Frink, the power plant was going to need some heavy
changes and upgrades if you wanted the business to expand. "The guy literally just
used tape to fix most of the machinery! Can't you believe that?" You throw your
hands out of exasperation.
"And not only that, I have my main scientist having a crisis because apparently,
zombie German cowboys are actually a magic thing!" You turn your head to look at
her, and you see her having a lost expression on her face. "Don't…Don't ask, please,
it's a long story." If someone is going to explain that mess, it's Flanders, he brought
that mess to you, he will do the exposition everytime.
"And the worst of all, that son of a gun, Burns is still out there, plotting like he always
does!" You let out a sigh as you finish your rant, and a moment later, you felt
ashamed, you didn't come here to unload all your problems to her, that's what your
assistant is for!
Surprisingly, Mona just gives a jovial laugh. "Corporate life is never easy, there is
always someone giving them trouble, trust me on this." She gives you a sly look as
she enters her hand on her bag, looking for something. A moment later, she takes
out a brown, oval shaped object. "Perhaps, this can brighten your day?" She offers it
to you.
You accept it without saying a word, and you just stare confused at the potato given
to you. "...Why are you giving me this?" You asks uncertainty.
"Well…some friends I'm living with have a potato garden of their own, and they
just…give some to me." She shrugs. "I have some for me just in case. Perhaps a potato can brighten your day?" She asks not sure herself. "Though, let me tell you they work as excellent projectiles if needed."
You don't say anything and just pocket your new potato, not seeing a point to reject
it. After a moment, you decide to ask Mona something.
There are many things you should be talking about, like that failed raid with Burns,
how long would she stay, or anything else, but your mind can only think of one thing.
"Say Mona…I see you did visit Homer didn't you?" You ask with a resigned tone. You
mind going back to the memory of you trying to visit his house a few weeks back,
and finding Mona in the living room with him and his family." How…How was he?"
You ask, your throat suddenly feeling dry.
She stays for a moment quiet, and you fear she might not answer you. "Homer…he
is doing fine now." She begins, her tone taking a melancholic one. "He has
grown…somewhat. They have told me their side of the story about the dome." Her
face gets a happy look as she seems to recall something.
And then it turns sour, her gaze an angry look at you. "And you seemed to have left
the part where you were with the mob trying to kill him." She says in an accusatory
tone. She doesn't say anything else, just giving you a disappointed stare.
You stop looking at her and move your gaze down to the grass, not even bothering to
deny it. "I knew he would mention that." You sigh defeated. Just another REGRET to
add to your list. You kind of wish you actually keep count of how many you were at,
though you think that would make matters worse.
"That's all you're saying?" She asks back with an intensity that you were familiar
with. "He is your son! He made a grave mistake, but that doesn't mean you have to
get the pitchforks, you should have supported him!"
"It really should not have come as a surprise for me! You were always like this, Bitter
yo your own flesh and blood! How could Abraham Simpson!?" She asks again
expectant and disappointed at the same time.
"At least I was here to try and kill him!" You answer back with a snarl. The birds, now
scared, fly away once again. Not that you cared about that "And where were you
during all that? Chained down to another tree in the middle of nowhere?" You
continue, looking at her now, her face taking a surprised and undignified tone. You
notice her hands that are on her lap, tightening.
"Mona… it… it isn't as simple as you think." You start, and before she gets a
response out you continue. "We were trapped in a dome like animals in a zoo." You cut her off. "But there was no caretaker giving us food or cleaning the place, they left
us to die! To die Mona!" You say getting worked up. "People were scared, angry,
even terrified!" You remember the looks of the rest of the habitants of the Retirement
Castle, terrified of the thought of not getting more food or medicine.
During the whole event, Jasper was the only one there for you during all of this that
didn't give you the stink eye, ignored you, or even tried to kill you because of your
relationship with Homer. Without him, you are not sure you could have made it
through.
"We didn't know what to do, but discomfort was growing, and suddenly, it came to
light that our son was responsible for all of that." You sigh remembering watching
the news alongside the other elderly in the living room. "It was like a demon
possessed all of us, y'know. We just…stormed out towards his house, no questions
or anything." You finish lamely.
"I know what I did was wrong, but I couldn't stop being angry with him…maybe with
myself too." You admit to her as you look at the sky, noticing how clear the skies are
today, nothing like the turmoil inside your head. "I think…deep down I feel
responsible for this too, Homer became like that because of me. I'm a screw up of a
dad aren't I?"
The way you treated Homer during his childhood is one of the things you will always
regret, you wish you could just…turn back time and do everything again like in those
cool movies, but you are old enough to realize that's foolish thinking, even for your
standards.
With thoughts of all of this becoming a mistake, you start to get up, just wanting to
get to your mansion and watch a marathon of Matlock.
But then you feel a hand grasp your shoulder, stopping you from getting up. She
turns your head to look at your ex-wife, a conflicted expression clear on her face.
"Perhaps…perhaps it's not all your fault." She says with a defeated tone, with a sour
look on her face. "It…didn't help that I wasn't there for him either. I'm not so blind to
not know that. I always knew that assisting those protests wasn't a good idea."
"And yet you still did it every single time." You couldn't stop yourself from snarking
back. But you immediately regret it as she flinches and looks away.
"I could never stop myself. I…I always thought I was doing the right thing, and…that I
could do both things, being a mother and an activist. I thought I was making a
difference" She says with a sad tone. "Ahhh, the curse of being young." She shakes
her head.
"Sometimes, I…I have these thoughts." She starts saying in a tense way. "That
maybe…just maybe, us getting together all those years back was a mista-"
"It wasn't a mistake." You cut her off with a sharp tone, you turn around and grasp
her shoulders, looking directly at her. "It. Was. Not. A. Mistake." Your heart palpitates
like crazy, you should be worried about getting a heart attack, but you couldn't care
less at this point.
"You know why? Because of Homer." You say with a tone of confidence and finality.
"He managed to do what we couldn't in our lives, have a family." You get closer to
her, your nose touching. "He is without a doubt better than what I could be, even with
all his faults."
You let her go after finishing, your chest feeling heavy and feeling your breath
lacking. You close your eyes, trying to get some rest.
"...You mean it?" She says in a voice so low, you could barely hear her.
"Yes…without a doubt." You answer and that's that. Conversation seems to end. No
one says anything for a while, both of you just lay there, in silence.
When you open your eyes you find the sun is starting to come down. Good Lord,
how long have you been here, Time does seem to go by quickly. You turn your head
to the side and you find Mona staring at the ground, her face with a pained
expression. You can guess what's eating her.
"I…will deal with Burns…somehow, and you are not wanted by the government
anymore. You…could just stay here, be with Homer, be the mother he needs." You
comment after a moment. She isn't looking at you, but you know she is
listening"...But you need to stop. You…you can't keep doing your protesting thing
forever. Sooner rather than lather, you have to call it quits."
"You have a chance I wish I had, don't…don't squander it please."
After saying your piece, you manage to get up and finally start walking out of the
park. Its getting late and you have more paperwork to work on. Maybe I finally have
time to work on that advertisement to hire some housestaff. You are not cleaning the
whole mansion by yourself.
"I…I will try." A voice sounds behind you, and you look back to see her standing too.
"...Thanks Abe." She says giving you a grateful smile.
You nod to her. You feel as though your relationship with her wasn't all quite fixed
yet. But it was a start, and that was enough for now.
"If…if you need any more help, I wouldn't mind lending a hand, I might have some more free
time after all." She says with a small grin.
"I will keep it in mind. Thanks Mona…for your time." You say as you continue your
walk, feeling thrice your age.
"Oh Abe…one more thing." Her voice was clear to hear as you were exiting the park.
"Not sure if you were aware, but… that pendant you are wearing? It's been glowing
the past few minutes."
WAIT WHAT?
"Wait what???!!!"
Rewards:
You managed to have a meaningful conversation with Mona. Relationship with her
might not be fully mended, but it's getting there!
Mona has decided to stay in Springfield for the time being. Unlocked Mona as a Full
time Hero Unit. Mona Opinion Raised by 10!
You found out your Pendant glows for some reason? You might need to check that
out. Options to Investigate the Pendant Unlocked.
Well...Jasper, you could have thought this through better, you think as you step out of the airport and into the bustling city as you note you have no idea where the jungle is, the "Amazonas" or something like that.
As you walk through the streets of the neighborhood with your luggage on one hand and your cane with the other, you take a moment to observe how alive the place looked.
Cars and those weird 3 wheeled vehicles passing by, streets filled with young people going on with their lives, and those street vendors that were weirdly insistent on buying their food. You have to even threaten one of them with your paddlin' to make them back off. How insistent they were!
…It reminded you of Springfield, but from years before, where things were different. More importantly, it made you remember your age, and the main reason you were here.
Your sniper friend from your old unit. Learning most of the soldiers you fought with during WW2 were deceased was a heavy blow. It made you realize you wouldn't be long for this world, same with Abe. That left a sour taste in your mouth and you couldn't tell why.
No…that would be a lie. You knew the exact reason. It began since the Dome broke down, when your friend Abraham won that poker match and he asked you to check that damn Dust Bowl.
You were starting to feel alive again, after so many years of just going through the motions and just rotting in the retirement home.
Having to tame those hounds was one of the most exciting things you had done in the past months. You taught those canines some discipline with your old reliable paddlin', making you feel satisfied like you haven't felt in many years.
And then your thoughts went back to your friend, the one you couldn't even remember the name of. The amount of self loathing and fear you felt when you realized you were starting to forget your comrades you fought with awakened something into you. You wouldn't allow yourself to forget just yet.
So…finding your old lost friend was the only way forward.
But you weren't sure how to achieve that. You didn't have a name or an address, just a dainty old photo. Things seemed lost from the beginning.
Luckily, Abe came to the rescue, you reached out to him, telling him the problem and asking for help. He didn't think twice before lending his aid, something you were grateful for.
He had that Mafioso of his, asks around, with whatever resources he had left, for what scraps of info they could get. Flanders also lent his help, asking whatever people he could if they knew about your missing soldier. Heck, even that Nerd guy Frink assisted, happy to not continue searching Magic for even a moment, searching the "internet" for clues and even ran the photo through a program that somehow managed to get a picture of how your friend would look today
A month passed and hope seemed to scatter, even with his resources Abe couldn't find anything. You were almost ready to call it quits.
Fortunately, Fat Tony came to the rescue, his contacts finally got a hit and what you learned from them had you with mixed feelings.
A mercenary…that's what your old unit member had as a job today. It seemed he continued working as a Sniper for hire even after leaving the military, he even changed his name and went by a weird moniker, and has been doing this for decades now, taking jobs as a bodyguard, contract killer, heck, even as a babysitter.
Supposedly, he was seen around the Amazon Rainforest just a week ago. No one knew if this was for a job or he was just taking some vacations. You didn't care, you had your men locked in and you would reach him out, one way or another.
Abe offered to send someone else with you, maybe Flanders or the just recently hired Apu, but you refused. This was something you had to do alone.
…you did accept a few thousands of dollars from him thought. You weren't senile enough yet to refuse money.
And that's how you ended up here. Somewhere in Colombia lost and with no idea how to reach your destination.
Ah well at least the flight on 'plane awesome' is over, now then where the hell are you exactly? Let's see what that reads...well you don't know what is written there… is that Spanish or French?! This "Spanish for Dummies" is useless!
…This might be harder than you thought. Ah well, it will probably not take a while to figure out which city you're In. You have money, that opens many doors.
About 4 hours later.
Right then...You have no clue but at least you found a guide to take you to the forest, where the man you're looking for should be. Heck that young whippersnapper even had a boat you can use to sail around in the rivers, though oddly enough he seemed to hesitate when talking about the local 'bandits' as they're called.
Apparently for some time now, a year at most maybe, a bunch of people have taken residence inside the Amazon rainforest and have pretty much declared the place their playground. They don't bother the nearby cities or towns , but pretty much anyone that ventures inside the forest tends to not come back. Not sure why the authorities didn't do anything. Maybe the government here was as inept as the one back home.
While that tidbit of info is concerning, you couldn't care, you will go your way, make sure not to bother those people and if those whippersnappers try to start trouble you will introduce them to your paddlin.
Anyway, with the guide just willing to take you to the forest, it would be up to you to find your buddy. Not sure how you will achieve that just yet, but you will come with something or just wing it.
How hard can it be to find a guy inside a huge forest?
(A FEW HOURS LATER)
Okay…you stand corrected, this might be way harder than you thought. You think as you stand in the middle of the jungle, and just tired with everything.
You've been walking for hours now through this jungle now and you are definitely lost. That cheap map you bought from the convenience store has helped you bupkis, as the Old Jewish man would say!
All the trees seem the same! it's freaking hot out here, it doesn't seem to stop raining and these Damn mosquitos are haunting you worse than the army did when you and Abe tried to escape the draft!
You are positively sure you have passed the same place again, you recognize the shape of that tree with how many times you have seen it! Are…you going in circles? God Almighty! That seems to be the case. How?
Irritation fills your being alongside tiredness and hunger and in a moment of rage you throw to the ground the map you have been trying to read for the last few hours and shout to the skies.
"Where are youuuuuuuuuu???!!!" You shout with all the strenght your lungs allow you to.
A moment passes, and as expected no one answers back, just a parrot screeching back at you from a tree branch high above you.
You sigh to yourself, and resign to continue walking aimlessly, you definitely could have planned this better, or planned something at all.
As you ponder to yourself what your next move could be, you hear some screeches getting closer to you, a quick glance around shows that green parrot, who seems to be following you, continuing making annoying sounds.
You have a feeling that the parrot is mocking you, that would be the nail in the coffin wouldn't it?
"Shoo birdy, shoo!" You shout to the bird as you wave your paddle around, trying to scare it as you continue walking. It doesn't seem to have the desired effect and the parrot just keeps squeaking, following you from tree to tree.
"Dumb bird…gonna get a paddlin once I get my hands on you." You grumbled to yourself as the bird kept infuriating you. You have your paddle ready in case the bird decides to get closer, but it never gets anywhere near you.
You narrow your eyes as you stare at the black orbs of the avian, seeing nothing but madness and malice.
"You win this round, but trust me…sooner or later, you're gonna get a paddlin." You tell the bird as you decide to ignore it and continue your trek. Ideas of how to get revenge against the bird folk come to your mind, perhaps you can convince that nerd Abraham hired to build something for this.
Your thoughts of revenge are interrupted quite abruptly when you suddenly hit the ground, your face and body getting covered in mind. It seems you tripped with something when you were busy declaring war to the parrots.
"What in tarnation is it now?" You mutter annoyed as you look back to see what you tripped with. At first glance it seems like…a green rock covered in moss?
You take a moment to stare at the rock…and can't help but think how weird it looks. The more you gaze at it the more you think it isn't a rock, but something else. Your eyes narrow as you dig into your mind, trying to come up with something. You know you recognize what's that, but it's eluding you, staying at the edges of your memories.
And while you are pondering this, you notice the parrot landing on top of the "rock" and begin squawking loud and clear for all the jungle to hear.
"Oh can it, you feathered rod-" You begin to shoo the parrot away but that's when the rock surprises you by…suddenly growing eyes?!
Out of nowhere, an eyeball just pops out of nowhere staring right at you! You can0t help but be surprised by this, starting to back away quickly. While you are retreating away, what's clearly a moss monster, starts to wake up and rise from his slumber.
You cannot believe this. Your father was right about them!!! How?! What else was he right about?! As you crawl away you eventually hit a tree, your back colliding against it, stopping you from running away.
"AHHHHHHH Moss monster!!!! S-St-stay away! Y-Y-Y-You don't want my flesh! I'm too old, too old I tell you!!!" You shout as you wave your paddle at it.
But the monster…just ignores you, focusing on stretching out and listening to the bird squawking at it from a nearby branch of a tree.
"I see…" A deep raspy voice sounds out from the monster. "You let me sleep quite a while didn't you?" He says as he slowly walks out to the tree the parrot is standing by, kneels at the base of the tree and puts his hand in a big bunch of leaves and takes out a…sniper rifle?
"Waaaaiiiitttt..." You stop panicking for a moment and focus on the "monster". Now that you are able to see it calmly, it's actually an…old man in a ghillie suit covered in moss and leaves?
Damn…that's impressive, you haven't seen anyone pull off such good camouflage since your war days, in fact, you remember the only person to hide so well was…
"No way in Sam Hell." You mutter as you quickly reach out into your bag, taking the photo that Frink gave you. The one that's an approximation of how your old squadmate is supposed to look now.
By now, he finally noticed you, and he slowly but calmly approaches you, not pointing his sniper at you, but holding it just in case.
You don't notice that thought, you are too busy quickly looking from the photo to his face. You can0t help but be amazed how close the photo is from the real thing. The baldness, the form of the cheeks, the sunken eyes, even the impressive beard! The only thing that the real one has different from the Original is that gleaming monocle.
And finally, as the guy stands directly in front of you, giving an indecipherable gaze, a name finally comes to the front of your mind. You aren't sure why you are so confident about it, but…you know that's his name.
"It's been so long… Gr-" You start to talk, but your old squadmate doesn't listen, he just hits you in the face with the butt of his gun.
"Oooowww!!! The front of my head!" You exclaim as you grab your now broken nose. The hit causes you to tumble further into the ground, not being able to do anything because of the excruciating pain.
"Wait…" You try to make him stop, but he still ignores you, and just hits you again, this time harder.
"Ahhhh geez! The back of my head!" You manage to exclaim before blacking out.
But as you begin to lose consciousness…you can't help but feel satisfaction, even if its a short lived one.
Consciousness slowly comes back to you, as you slowly begin stirring back to life, you can't help but feel annoyed that the thing that woke you up was that DAMN PARROT!!!
"Stuuuupiiiid… birdieee." You mutter, your eyes still closed, but that bird is still squawking like it's trying to imitate a rooster. You try to move, but notice that your body isn't responding to you, alarmed you open your eyes in an instant.
First thing you notice, it's that you are in some sort of cliff, if the view of the whole jungle is anything to go by. You would be kind of impressed by it if you didn't have other issues to worry about, like…for example, being tied with vines to what seems to be a tree. From your neck to your feet you are tangled by thick vines keeping you in place.
And let's not forget the guy sitting in a tree trunk, aiming his sniper rifle at you with an annoyed look on his face.
"Sooooo…" He says, drawing out the word for a bit. "Did you have a good sleep? The forest is quite the place to have a nap. Am I right?" He says, his hoarse voice being the only thing you heard. You notice how quiet the forest is right now. Like…it just muted itself to allow the guy to talk…creepy.
While a normal person would be scared out of their mind by being tied up and having and having a gun aimed at your face, this doesn't face you. you have dealt with worse during the war. Heck, you dealt with worse during the airplane trip here!
"It could have been a nice sleep…if you didn't hit me with your damn gun." You say grumpy. Your head still hurts from both hits, you are going to have a headache the rest of the week pretty sure.
You wish you could…waiiiiiiiit.
"Wait a minute…Where's my paddle!?" You ask indignantly. You don't care if the guy shoots you, you had that paddle for the better part of your life, you are NOT losing it! They don't make paddles as good as they did in your youth…damm capitalism.
"I decided to confiscate it." The moss covered man responds simply. "Seeing you were the one who interrupted my nap, I saw it fair to…relieve you of your things." He shrugs, not seeing anything bad with that, increasing the headache you currently had.
He gently puts his sniper rifle down in the trunk and then reaches for his pocket and pulls out a photo…you recognize it, it's the one the lab coat gave you!
He just stares at it for a few seconds… his eyes narrowing and he with a swift motion, he turns it around and shows it to you, moving his face closer to you so the photo and him are side by side.
"Now…I'm in the middle of something right now, so I will ask this only once." He says with a tone that leaves no argument for silliness. "Who. Are. You?" His eyes seem to drill onto you and directly into your soul…that's unnerving.
"I… I …am…" You stutter, being caught off guard for how things are proceeding. Your squadmate furrows his brows, not liking your lack of answer. "I'm Jasper! Jasper Beardsley! We were in the same unit back during the war! I..I…was looking for you!" You shout quickly, words just escaping your mouth without any thought.
"Jasper…Jasper." He mutters, saying your name like he was tasting it. With his free hand he scratches his bald head, deep in thought. "That name doesn't ring any bells." He comments with a huff. "I would remember a soldier with a name like that."
"It must be! You shot me in the leg that time during basic, remember!" You say motioning with your face to your now fake leg. The old man just looks at your tied legs, shrugging.
"Unlikely story…I never miss my shots." He says with a tone of confidence. "Try again."
"I tried to escape the draft by dressing as a woman!" You comment exhasperated. "The guys kept mocking me for weeks for that! Except you!" You say trying to jog his memory.
"Wait…" He mutters, his eyes not blazing at your soul, but instead looking at the ground, deep in thought. "Jasper..jasper…leg…dresses as a woman…" He stays like that for a minute or two, by your experience, he must be reliving a flashback most likely.
He then gasps and looks at you, with recognition in his eyes. "Jasper!" He shouts amazed, then his eyes narrow again. "Oh you son of a gun, you own me like a hundred dollars! You poker cheater!" He says exasperated.
"You cannot prove I cheated, no one can!" You answer back rapidly. It's never cheating if you aren't caught. "Only God can do it!"
"And that was the reason I stopped playing poker night with you." He smirks as he takes a more comfortable position in the trunk.
His posture is more relaxed, not as antagonistic as before, but it seems he is still somewhat wary of you, you don't get why.
"It's been more than 50 years since we saw each other." He comments as he grabs the photo with both of his hands. "Last time was…was…uh…I don't think I remember." He says with a sad undertone. You just stare at him with sadness in your eyes.
"Grant…" You start, but then he cuts you off before you can continue.
"I don't go by that name anymore." He says abruptly. "Nevermind that. Why are you here Jasper? Who sent you?" He asks you as he strokes his beard, thinking. "Uncle Sam knows not to bother me anymore, so…who you represent."
"Well…myself?" You shrug helplessly. "I had to find you. I just…had." The raising of one of his eyebrows is the only thing you receive back from him. You sigh.
"It's just us now y'know. Everyone else in our unit is dead." You start, voice filled with sadness. "And…I think I've forgotten about most of them at this point. Their faces, what they did…about the war…And it hurts. " You finish lamely. "I don't want to forget all the friends and good I did back then. I… don't want to be left with just nightmares."
"You too, eh?" Your friend answers softly as he just stares at you for a moment, sadness and recognition filling his eyes. With a heavy sigh, he gets up, calmly walks up to you, and grabs a stray vine from the bunch keeping you tied.
With a simple pull from him, the vines constricting you and keeping you tied to the tree seem to loosen up, leaving you free sitting in the ground.
"Let me help you brother." He says as he offers his hand for you to take. You gladly take it and with his help you manage to stand up. You feel your bones creak a little as you get up on your feet.
"I feel the same as you brother." He comments as he puts a hand on your shoulder, grasping it tightly. "The war…what we did back there…what we saw…what I saw through my scope…it never leaves my mind. It's there every time I close my eyes." He comments with empathy, and you realize at that moment, that he is the same as Abe and you.
"Even now I think a part of me is still in the war, fighting." He comments as he stops grasping our shoulder and slowly walks up to the edge of the cliff, taking a knee and just staring at the scenery. "I never could go back to normal. There's a part of me that needs to keep fighting. To do good. To just…keep pressing that trigger…over and over again."
"That's why you became a mercenary?" You comment as you walk up to him, staring at the same view of the magnificent Amazoness. The view somewhat calms your mind, even when talking about this subject.
"I didn't start as a mercenary." He comments lightly. "I was approached by Uncle Sam, you see? They recognized how good I was and wanted to keep putting my skills to use instead of getting rusty. I was put in some secret team nonsense."
"I accepted and it was good for a while. I fought the good fight, help get rid of some…problematic people, and above all…I was able to keep shooting my rifle." He says with a nostalgic tone.
"But after a while…something changed. I can't tell what or how I started to not feel that satisfaction of doing another mission, just the yearning feeling to just keep shooting my rifle." He comments sadly.
"Grant…" You don't say much, you just put a hand on his shoulder, making him know you are here for him. He, for an answer, puts a hand above your own, keeping it there.
"That's where it dawned on me. War…war never changes. It doesn't matter how many wars are fought or how many people. Things won't change. The U.S is in the precipice of another war, even if the common citizen doesn't know it. Just know that it's fought between some madmen businessmen with desires of greatness." He says gravely. "The U.S of America that is today is not the same our brothers and us fought for. Not one bit."
You understand what he says. The reports Abe shared with the rest of you in the Power Plant. Flanders and Frink couldn't believe it themselves, while the zombie just didn't care, he was more busy trying to look for some cowboy clothes that fit him.
"War never changes…but it changes us, the people that fight for it…and almost never for good." He says with a tone of finality. "I don't think I will be able to go back to normality." He finishes with a grimace.
"So what…you just gonna…keep doing this until you die on the job?" You ask incredulously. You understood what he was saying every word. But still…hearing him saying this just made something inside of you twist in worry.
"Heh…that would be lovely. As long as I get to fire one more shot…I couldn't care less." He says with a grin that doesn't reach his eyes.
Is at that moment that you knew that you couldn't leave him alone…not for yourself but for him. You won't leave a soldier behind…especially a good friend.
"You…can come with me if you want." You start, not even sure yourself of the world coming out of your mouth. "I'm working for another of my friends in the army. Abe Simpsons not sure if you heard about him." A glint in his eyes tells you that he does, either if it was from recent news or from the war itself doesn't matter.
"Might not look like it, but the guy does want to do good with what he has. Might fumble in the dark a lot. Even so…I trust him with my life." You continue, confidence picking in your every word. "We know a little of how bad things are but…he seems determined to move forward and do…something."
"And…we could use the help of someone as experienced as you. We…can cover whatever price you ask for." You say, throwing out the offer, giving the best shot you got.
"So…what do you call a soldier… Once more unto the breach?" You ask with a hopeful tone.
And for a few minutes, both of you say nothing, just staring at the forest, enjoying the tranquility it offers.
As sunset started appearing on the horizon, he spoke again. "You know, you always sucked at giving speeches. Did you know?" He says with a huff.
"Yeah…well I'm not a politician." You say in defense, trying to appear nonplussed. But inside you were feeling sadness. But then…
"You got yourself a deal soldier." He says as he retires the hand above of yours and gets up. He starts walking to the trunk where he sit before.
You are just too surprised to say anything. You stay there as he reaches inside the trunk of the tree and pulls out a pair of binoculars.
"I really hope your friend can do what he promises. And to tell the truth. I might need his help with something." He says as he passes you the pair of binoculars.
"With what…exactly?" You ask with wariness as you accept the object.
With calm movement, he motions you to put them on and once you do, he grabs your hands and calmly moves your view to the left.
"I found these guys during one of my jobs a few months ago. At first I thought little of them, just another paramilitar group playing around." He says as your gaze lands into what seems like a military base. and from the looks of it…it's wrecked.
"But then I encountered them again. And when I tried to look up who they were my contacts came back empty handed" He says gravely as you stop using the binoculars and look at him. He reaches again for his pocket and pulls out… a medal? He hands it to you.
And as you accept it, you can't stop yourself from having a feeling of wrongness when you look at it. It has a symbol of a black talon on it, but somehow it reminds you of something else…you cannot out your finger on it.
"This is the 5 base I've crashed, and in all of them they had no info to give me. The only thing of value I found was that symbol in all of their agents." He says as he takes it back. "Your friend better be ready to help me snoop around a little more."
You nod in acceptance, thinking Abe wouldn't mind taking a look at this. You then offer him a hand. "You got yourself a deal Grant."
He gladly shakes it as he offers you a solemn look on his face as he fixes the monocle on his eye. "Thanks. And please don't call me Grant anymore."
"...I go by "The finale" these days."
REWARDS:
Recruited THE FINALE!!!
A new fire has lit inside Jasper. He is more determined that ever before. He gains a +1 to all his stats except Occult.
Jasper appreciates all the help you gave him to find The Finale. +15 Opinion gained.
Jasper trait: Brothers in Arms applies now with The Finale, whenever they go on adventures together! It does not stack with the bonus he gains with Abe though!
